Someone to watch over me
by katsuyo
Summary: Multichapter AU When the life of the company's robotics genius is threatened, Suna Enterprises hires the Inuzuka Personal Protection Agency. Kankuro isn't interested in someone being that close to him until he meets his assigned shadow, Hana Inuzuka.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Notes:**

Yes, I have my hands full with my current stories but I can never resist the allure of another Kankuro story. Blame my muse.

I'm busting my hump finishing up chapters and editing as we speak and I will be posting new chapters for the other fan fiction in the next few days or so.

Story updates are on my author profile. Don't threaten to beat me… yet. XD

This story is a special request and is dedicated to one of my dear beta readers, **Judo Creature**, who wanted to see a Kankuro/Hana Inuzuka pairing.

This is a raw chapter… like everything else in life, it's subject to revision at a later date.

Enjoy.

The story is rate T for teens and contains mild profanity.

A sentence in _Italics_ denotes the private thoughts of a character.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto. I just enjoy writing stories…

**Chapter One – A Challenging Assignment**

Kiba looked up from his paperwork when he heard the brisk tap on the office door.

It was his sister's signature knock.

"Come in, Hana. I've been expecting you." replied the large man behind the desk.

"Hey, brat. What's the job? Is it another decrepit old billionaire who needs a personal body guard again?" countered Hana frowning in remembrance of the last job.

Kiba laughed and replied, "Don't tell me you're still sore about him copping a feel? Jiraiya did say he was sorry, Hana. He even set you up in a nice spa for a couple of weeks, despite the fact that you busted his arm."

"Damn pervert! I don't care if he's the owner of the Come Come Paradise Franchise of high class strip clubs. A strip club is still a strip club and he's still a lecherous old bastard!" grumbled Hana to her grinning brother.

"Well, you'll be relieved to know that it's not a perverted billionaire for this assignment but this one is going to be tricky," replied Kiba.

"Tricky? In what way?" asked Hana, sitting down in the comfortable leather seat.

"We've been hired by Suna Enterprises to look after their chief Robotics Guru. They are worried that the competition may try to eliminate this guy before he finishes his latest project. A project that has the potential to put the competitors out of business," murmured the large tattooed man, sliding a manila folder over to his sibling.

Hana quickly flipped through the dossier and raised an eyebrow before commenting, "This isn't much to go by, Kiba… Are you sure Shino wasn't able to get more information than this?"

Kiba grinned widely at his sister's comment. He wasn't offended. He knew Shino was the best in the business. If there was information to be dug up, he always found the dirt.

"Yeah – that's it. This guy is a dark horse. In fact, aside from the marketing information available to the public, not much else is known about the corporation or the family that runs it. The only thing we do know is that this guy is related to the two key players and primary stockholders on the board," replied Kiba with a small frown before continuing, "What we also know is that this guy has been offered crazy amounts of money to leave the family operation for one of the rival companies and he's turned them down countless times. He's fiercely loyal to his siblings."

Hana folded her arms across her chest and looked down at the open dossier in quiet contemplation. She secretly admired the man for sticking to his principles and not abandoning his family, despite the inducements being waved in the guy's face.

She looked up at her own sibling under hooded lashes and gave a small smile.

_In fact, this man reminded him an awful lot like her own brother._

She too, had been offered a lot of money to work for rival personal security and protection agencies, only to turn them down every time.

Hana reasoned that she already worked for the best in the business, so there was no need for her to jump ship. Besides, the advantage of being the boss man's sibling was that he was pretty generous about giving his employees time off after long and tedious assignments… like Jiraiya.

Hana mentally shuddered. He certainly hadn't been her worst assignment but he'd been the most memorable to date.

She shuffled through the papers in the folder until she came to the photos of the clients.

They were certainly a striking family. The artic blonde was stunning in an unconventional sense but her eyes were drawn to the two tattooed men.

"Tattoos, huh?" asked Hana, grinning wickedly at her amused brother.

Kiba had a feeling that his sister was going to enjoy this assignment. Hana was a sucker for men with ink, most especially if they were good looking men. The more prominent the place, the better she liked it and facial tattoos were a definite turn on for the young woman.

"So who's the lucky man I will be shadowing?" asked Hana finally getting excited at the prospect of working this assignment.

Kiba grinned wolfishly, his own tribal tattoos slashing down like red fangs as he pointed to one of the photos.

"You'll meet the family tomorrow morning at their place of business at nine sharp with Hinata and then you will be following him around." replied Kiba trying not to laugh out loud at the look of lust that briefly flashed in Hana's eyes.

_Even better!_

"I can hardly wait, brother." murmured Hana with an evil smirk before picking up the dossier and walking out the office.

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"This is bullshit! I keep telling you two that I don't need a fucking watch-dog!" ground out the large man turning to glare at his two siblings.

They continued to watch him impassively as he prowled around the spacious office.

"Kankuro, Gaara and I feel that hiring personal protection for you is the best option, at least until you've finished your latest project," countered the blonde woman smoothly.

"Temari - the police are already looking into the death threats and the failed car bomb attempt. This is overkill. I can look after myself," muttered Kankuro in disgust.

"Detective Nara suggested that since they wired your car – they see you as a serious threat to their livelihood. We just think that it would be in your best interests that we have an expert around for a while to keep an eye on you," replied Temari.

Kankuro gave his brother a disgruntled look and asked, "You agreed to hire this agency then, Gaara?"

"The Inuzuka Agency is the best in the business. I wouldn't trust your welfare with anyone else," replied Gaara, leaning back in his large leather chair and folding his arms across his chest.

Kankuro stopped his pacing and gave his brother a piercing look, clearly telling him without words what he thought of Gaara's concerns.

The red-head merely raised his non-existent eyebrow, causing his kanji tattoo to ride up further on his left temple.

The large man gave a disgusted snort and stalked over to one of the large bay windows.

He began to stare blindly out at the cityscape, the morning light reflecting off the skyscrapers. Normally, he enjoyed the spectacle of the colors dancing off the tall buildings but right now, he was too wound up with frustration eating at his gut and feeling betrayed by what he viewed as his siblings' high handedness.

He hated it when they did shit like this. It made him conveniently forget the fact that while they were his family, they were also the ones in charge of running this business.

Kankuro heard the crackle of the intercom then as Gaara's receptionist announced the arrival of his nine o'clock appointment.

_The Agency team was here. _

_Great. An arrogant asshole trailing him all over the place until the completion of his project deadline. He couldn't wait to meet the **guy**._

The large doors opened and he turned to watch the man who was going to be his paid babysitter enters the room… only to stare in stunned silence at the sight of the two beautiful women dressed in conservative business attire walk sedately over to the leather chairs in front of the large desk.

The petite woman with the indigo bob walked ahead with her brief case firmly by her side as the taller athletic brunette with the odd facial tattoos followed a step or two behind.

Kankuro instantly dismissed the smaller woman from his mind as he continued to watch the other woman fascinated. She was beautiful but those triangular tattoos like slashing red fangs on her cheeks made her look positively animalistic.

_Not that it was a bad thing…_

Gaara and Temari looked over at their now quiet sibling, contemplating the new visitors with undisguised curiosity. They were both privately amused that he wasn't objecting to the added protection now.

Gaara stood up as the petite woman walked up to the desk with her hand outstretched and introduced herself and the other woman.

"Mr. Sabaku, I'm Hinata Hyuuga and this is my associate, Hana Inuzuka. We're from the agency."

Kankuro continued to stare at the two women as Gaara shook their hands and gestured for them to take a seat.

_These two worked for that agency?! Suddenly this private babysitter thing didn't sound so bad._

--------------------------------

He was taken by surprise the very moment when they walked into the office.

Gaara was having problems of his own trying to keep the disbelief from showing upon his face as he clasped the smaller woman's hand in greeting.

She was very alluring and looked quite delicate with those pearlescent eyes and pale skin of hers but her firm hand shake bore testament to the underlying strength and resilience of the young woman before him.

He sat down at his desk and watched as Hinata swung her brief case onto her lap.

Gaara was trying not to look at how her slim pencil skirt rode up her leg as she had sat down and shifted her weight slightly.

She fished out a small bundle of contracts and leaned forward to place them carefully on the table.

Gaara could feel himself break out in a fine sheen of sweat as he caught a glimpse of her generous cleavage peaking out from the top of her modest blouse.

He collected the paperwork and began to read, starting to become even more impressed with this woman before him. This was the first time he'd done business with a company where the contract was as clear and concise as this one was.

He looked up suddenly and frowned, "You need to make copies of our keys?"

"We require keys only for those premises that Mr. Kankuro Sabaku will be working and residing. It's a safety precaution and our operative will need immediate access if he's in trouble," murmured Hinata softly, trying to slow down her heartbeat.

The red head was quite attractive in a dark and dangerous sense. The last time she had been so affected by a man had been her late husband, Naruto.

She was perplexed when she saw him frown abruptly and wondered at what caused that reaction.

"You will be providing protection for my brother?!" growled Gaara, clearly displeased by that thought.

Hinata tried hard to hide the smile that threatened to break loose and quickly replied, "No. My colleague Hana Inuzuka has been assigned to look after your brother. I'm merely here for the paperwork."

_She was the secretary?! He wouldn't mind looking at her every day._

"You couldn't afford my services, Mr. Sabaku," replied the petite woman smoothly.

Hana turned her head to the side to stop herself from laughing out loud at the stunned look on the red-head's face.

She glanced over at the sister and noticed that she was quite amused by that intriguing little interlude between the two of them.

Hana wasn't about to let onto the brooding man behind the desk that her friend could literally read people like an open book and she could figure out what they were thinking relatively easily, even normally hard to read people like Gaara. Hinata's loyalty to her brother was absolute and she was an old hand at making that clearly apparent to clients.

The petite woman waited perfectly composed while Gaara carefully read through the rest of the contract, then signed the paperwork.

"You will receive a copy of the contract via certified mail in a couple of days. Do you have a spare set of keys that we can make copies from, Mr. Sabaku?" murmured Hinata, sliding the contracts back into the brief case and carefully removing a large white envelope before locking the case and standing up.

"Call me Gaara," replied the red-head before continuing, "You can use this spare set, rather than having keys especially cut."

"It has all the keys we need, Mr. Sabaku?" questioned Hinata, ignoring his invitation to address him in such a casual way.

_She dared to question him?! She didn't come up to his chin and yet, she still had the cheek to double check?_

"Yes… all of them," Growled out Gaara.

"Excellent. We will get copies cut from this set and return them back to you. Good day, Mr. Sabaku," replied Hinata, knowing her insistence to get another set of keys cut was going to infuriate the man further.

Hinata placed the keys into her pocket and turned to look at her colleague still seated with a small smirk on her lips.

"Hana, I will drop off the keys at your designated apartment for this assignment. The details of your cover, documents and your apartment key are in this envelope," murmured the small woman placing the white envelope into Hana's hand before walking over to the door.

Hinata paused at the door way and couldn't resist making one last comment before going out the door, "Good luck, Hana. You're going to need it dealing with those two men on a regular basis. The red-head has the potential to be a bigger pain in the ass than the boss."

Hana shared a mischievous grin with the blonde seated behind Gaara who was fuming over Hinata's parting words.

This was the first time she had ever seen the petite woman get so riled up by a man before… it was going to be interesting to see who was left standing after this assignment was finally completed. Hana had her money riding on the pearl-eyed Hyuuga.

-----------------------------------------

The two women were correct in their assumption that the president of Suna Enterprises was quietly fuming at the silver-eyed woman's final parting words. He had a feeling that she said that just to be deliberately provoking and he didn't like it, not one little bit.

"Is she always that confrontational?" growled out Gaara to the young woman with the strange facial tattoos, still seated before him.

Hana looked up from her perusal of the envelope and smiled before replying, "No, not normally. When I first met her, she was a shy little thing but her late husband was largely responsible for changing that situation."

Gaara watched Hana return her attention back to the contents of the package as he sat there in shock slowly digesting the brunette's words.

_The young woman was a widow already, at her age?_

He looked up from his contemplation of his desk when he heard his brother finally shifting from his position at the bay window to walk over to the large desk.

Hana heard the man move too and tried to keep rigid control on her emotions as her eyes drank in the sight of the large man prowling over like a lion on the hunt and sinking down into the leather chair beside her.

It was hard to believe that the man with the kabuki style facial tattoos was a genius in his field. He just didn't look the type but as she knew from first hand experience, looks were very deceiving.

"So… you will be watching over me. I'm pleasantly surprised that your boss would send in a woman for a dangerous job like this one," drawled Kankuro, deliberately trying to do some baiting of his own.

"My brother believes that sending in an operative of the opposite sex arouses the least amount of suspicion," replied Hana raising her eyebrow and daring the man to comment further.

Gaara and Temari shared a telling look before eagerly returning their gazes back to the drama unfolding before them.

"So, I find myself curious. What cover did your brother devise for you on this latest assignment?" murmured the large man, giving the woman a sideways glance that made it clear to Hana that the man wouldn't be adverse to covering her himself in the near future.

Temari and Hana both held their collective breaths. Temari had never seen her brother act like this before and Hana had never before been so blatantly propositioned like this man was doing.

Still, Hana wasn't about to let Kankuro get the upper hand, even though she wasn't adverse to the idea of being intimately covered by this man. She had a feeling that he would never let her leave his bed feeling dissatisfied…if he ever let her leave it at all.

"I've a feeling that you're going to love it. My assignment name will be Emiko Tanaka and I'm your mistress," drawled out Hana in a sultry tone before casually murmuring, "Do you have a problem with that or do you need to inform your current mistress that you're stepping up?"

_So she was going to pose as his mistress, huh? _

No, he didn't currently have one but looking at this woman sitting beside him, he certainly wasn't upset at the notion of her being his mistress and the connotations and privileges associated with that position.

"Hell no, I'm not upset in the slightest by the thought of you acting as my mistress. In fact, it's been years since I've had one of those. Yes, _Emiko_… I'm looking forward to it," countered Kankuro in a honeyed tone.

Temari and Gaara looked at each other a little shocked and very excited at the chemistry zinging between these two. Kankuro was right. It had been years since a woman had turned his head and the prospect that he found this one attractive gave them hope.

Yes, judging by the look of determination on Kankuro's face, it was only going to be a matter of time before he made the young woman his mistress in reality.

----------------------------------

"As delightful as this conversation is, I still have a project deadline. Can I go back to the lab now or do you two still need to grill me some more?" asked Kankuro, giving his siblings a cutting glance.

Gaara scowled at his brother's tone and countered, "We're done here for the moment. I know where to find you if I need you."

Kankuro nodded abruptly and got to his feet in a sweeping fluid movement.

Hana finished placing her assignment information back into the envelope when she felt a movement close by.

She glanced up to see the man had his hand outstretched, waiting to help her up.

"Well, darling? Are you coming with me or staying with them?" murmured the large man in a cheeky tone.

"You better go with him now, Emiko. We'll talk to you later," replied Temari with a small smile of her own.

Kankuro's siblings watched in silence as their brother stalked out of the office, dragging the brunette along in his wake by her wrist.

Temari waited until the door slammed behind Kankuro before commenting to Gaara, "Well, he's seems a lot more accepting of the new situation, doesn't he?"

Gaara made a deep scoffing sound and replied, "Inuzuka is not a stupid man. He knew what he was doing when he assigned his sister to someone like Kankuro. I'm now satisfied after watching that enlightening interaction between the two of them that he'll keep his watchdog close and that's all I care about at present."

Temari nodded absently at that startling observation. The safety of their brother was paramount to them and if it took a dangerous and beautiful woman to keep him in line, it was worth it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Notes:**

I am a mere slave to my muse's whims. She stands over me right now, the whip at the ready… little witch. XD

This is the raw chapter and like all good things in life, is subject to revision from time to time.

Read as always… review at your leisure. Enjoy.

This story is dedicated to one of my betas and favorite reviewers, **Judo Creature**.

Thanks for your support and hard work on the stories. It was an honor for me to make your dream of a Hana/Kankuro pairing a reality.

Thanks to the readers who have left reviews. It's always wonderful to hear your thoughts, especially you, **blazedadragon**. Your refreshing commentary always amuses me to no end and I always feel inspired to write something naughty into the next chapter… is _that_ a bad thing? XD

A sentence in _Italics_ denotes the private thoughts of an individual character.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto and I don't make a profit from it either... That's just the way it goes… I'm just here to write and eat the free popcorn.

**Chapter 2 - A Client to die for**

"I know you're anxious to spend some time with me before you need to get back to work, sweetheart…but people are staring." murmured an amused voice behind him in a sultry tone.

Kankuro suddenly stopped stalking down the hallway in mid stride and looked back at the woman he was towing along behind him. She seemed unfazed by his odd behavior but he could tell from the startled looks he was receiving from other employees who had stopped to stare that they certainly weren't used to it.

_Shit… the last thing he wanted for them to be gossip fodder for the company rumor mill…_ _Yeah, he could well imagine how strange this looked… the resident workaholic, suddenly in the company of a desirable woman._

He felt a tingling sensation shoot up his arm then as he felt her feather light caress on his exposed wrist. Kankuro darted his attention back to the alluring woman he still held by the hand.

"I'm sorry, Emiko… I was…overcome by the moment," said the large man with the kabuki styled tattoos, fully realizing that his so-called apology was very tongue in cheek.

_Hmmmph… she didn't believe that for one second._

"Smart ass…" murmured the young woman under her breath before remarking in a louder voice, "Sweetheart, why don't we take our time… I know that's a novel concept for you to grasp but I imagine you will soon pick it up in no time at all…"

Kankuro's dark emerald eye's narrowed as her last comment scored a couple of knowing chuckles from curious onlookers still lurking in the corridor.

Hana took advantage of his distraction to loop her arm around his to pull him closer to her before quietly remarking, "I think we've given them more than enough to think about, don't you… why don't you show me to your lab and we can talk there."

Kankuro nodded his agreement and gave the brunette a lop-sided smile before continuing to walk down the hallway in companionable silence.

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It was the man's comment that alerted Hana that something wasn't right.

"Hmmm… I was sure I locked this door before I left for that meeting." said Kankuro off- handedly before stepping forward to push open the door.

The young woman suddenly wrapped her arm tighter around the large man's own and gave a sharp imperceptible negative shake of her head.

"Don't go in yet, Kankuro… apart from the door, is there anything else that strikes you as looking out of place or odd." whispered Hana in his ear.

The tattooed man frowned, quickly scanning the room from the doorway before murmuring, "Yeah… there is… I don't as a rule, receive packages in my lab."

Hana's eyes widened at that comment before she yanked the man backwards.

"Run, Kankuro…now." said the brunette in a deceptively calm voice, getting slightly behind and pushing him forward.

She could see he was about to protest but Hana interrupted, "Please…don't argue."

They had managed to get to where the hallway turned the corner, when the lab exploded, knocking the couple to the ground and showering them with debris and building dust.

"Shit!" muttered Kankuro as he hit the marble floor and felt the slight pressure of the woman's weight against his back, her arms cradling around his head.

"Yeah, shit… would be a good word right about now…" murmured Hana with a small hint of amusement in her voice as she coughed.

_She was amused?!_

"You think this is funny?" hissed out Kankuro from under Hana's lithe body.

"It always is when you manage to survive being blown to bits." replied a muffled female voice on top of him, coughing again before asking in a serious undertone, "Are you okay? Any cuts, abrasions, broken bones?"

_Fuck! If it hadn't have been for the woman currently sprawled on top of him, he would have seriously bought the farm this morning._

"No, I'm fine… what about you?" replied Kankuro softly, a little concerned, hearing the woman give a soft groan.

"Sweetheart, business attire really isn't conducive to my line of work… I've got some cuts and minor abrasions but I'll pull through… the important thing is that you're okay... as corny as that sounds," chuckled the woman softly into his ear.

They looked up as they both heard the sound of people running towards their location.

"Shit… Kankuro, we still need to talk…but now, is not the time." murmured Hana before resting her forehead against the man's back and grimacing at the sharp stab of pain.

She could hear the sirens in the distance, the sounds of people starting to gather not far from where the couple lay in a heap on the floor and knew that they were going to have company soon.

_No – any conversation between them was going to have to wait until they had dealt with the police… First day on the job and it was already proving to be interesting._

---------------------------------

Hana sat in the back of the ambulance and gave a half smile as she received stitches for some of the deeper cuts.

"You okay?" murmured a deep masculine voice beside her.

"I've got a man with his hands all over my legs…what could be better than that?" replied the woman with the red fangs on her cheeks, the humor apparent in her voice.

Kankuro gave a wry chuckle at Hana's comment before clearing his throat softly and murmuring, "Detective Nara is here and he wants to ask you a few questions, Han...ney."

The brunette pulled the man close, pressing her lips onto his lean cheek before traveling up to the shell of his ear and whispering, "It's Emiko… never forget that."

The slip wasn't serious this time but Hana didn't want to let the man get away without receiving a little…punishment for his lapse.

Kankuro let out a sharp gasp at he felt the sting of her teeth nipping his ear lobe before she finally pulled away.

"Can you do that again, later?" growled Kankuro under his breath, not bothering to disguise the hopeful tone from his voice.

Hana gave the man with the kabuki tattoos a long look of consideration before murmuring seductively, "We'll see…why? Do you think you'll need to be punished later?"

They heard a disgruntled voice behind them sigh tiredly, "Hmph… How troublesome. Are you Kankuro Sabaku? I'd like to ask you some questions regarding what happened this morning…"

Kankuro nodded curtly at the police detective standing in front of the open ambulance with a bored expression on his face.

"Darling, I'll be back shortly to take you home, okay?" replied Kankuro softly to the young woman still getting patched up on the stretcher.

Hana nodded absently as the large man left and heard the detective direct another police officer to take him to the make shift interview room.

Hana sighed tiredly as she heard a tired male voice ask, "Can I ask you a few questions before I go to interview your boyfriend, Miss..."

"It's Tanaka... Emiko Tanaka, Detective Nara," replied Hana, nodding absently.

The police detective placed a hand on the EMT's shoulder and murmured, "Can you give us a few minutes, please?"

Hana felt the ambulance shift again and heard the back door of the ambulance softly click shut.

The young woman raised her head up from her folded arms as she heard a bored voice quietly say, "It's been a while, _Emiko_... so, how is that brother of yours?"

-------------------- ------------------------------

"Yes, Shikamaru... it's been a while... He's doing as well as can be expected... considering," replied Hana softly as she felt the police detective kneel down beside the stretcher.

"And Hinata? Is she well?" asked Shikamaru hesitantly, not missing the woman's soft nod in response.

_Yes, it had been a while since he had seen them all... She didn't want to dwell on the circumstances of that last time... it had been a sad period in all of their lives..._

"So, what happened this morning?" continued the lazy voice with a serious undertone.

"I met with the clients this morning and was walking back to Mr. Sabaku's lab. We were about to enter when he commented that he thought he had locked the door prior to our morning meeting. I then prevented the client from entering the premises and asked him if there was anything he could immediately see that seemed out of place. When he told me that he never received packages in his lab, I grabbed the man and started running... you know the rest," replied Hana in a soft business like tone.

Detective Nara nodded thoughtfully and replied, "Good job as always... _Emiko_."

The man sat there staring into space before quietly murmuring, "He has no clue who his family has hired to protect him, does he?"

Hana gave the man a sharp look before answering in an equally bored tone, "Of course not and I'm hoping that he'll never find out. You know in our business that sort of information can get us both killed."

Shikamaru nodded in understanding and asked, "You got a number I can contact you on? I could use your help to put these creeps away sooner..."

Hana gave the detective a searching look before extracting a plain white business card from the nondescript envelope in her large hand bag and handed it over to the man.

"I see Hinata is still as efficient as always..." replied Shikamaru with a small smirk before standing up and walking over to the back door of the ambulance.

"Well, thanks for your help, Miss Tanaka. If you have any more information, you have my card." said Shikamaru in a loud professional tone, one of his dark eyebrows raised.

Hana turned slightly and replied with a small smirk, "Thanks, Detective Nara... I'm sure I will hear from you soon with an update."

Shikamaru nodded and turned away but not before whispering, "Just be careful, _Emiko_... and try not to fall in love with him..."

---------------- -------------------------- ------------------------

Kankuro sat in the small meeting room drumming his fingers on the table in frustration, much to the annoyance of the police officer waiting in the room with him.

"Do you mind stopping that annoying tapping... it's starting to get on my nerves." growled the female police officer sitting in the chair near the door.

Kankuro pinned the blonde woman with another of his infamous bored and arrogant looks before continuing to drum his fingers on the table.

_Quite frankly, he really didn't give a shit if he worked on the woman's last nerve..._

There was a brisk tap on the door before the tall and equally bored visage of Detective Nara entered the room.

"Yamanaka, why don't you go check to see if the CSI team has arrived yet and I will talk to Mr. Sabaku," replied Shikamaru, not missing the relieved look of his subordinate as she flounced out of the room.

"I guess I managed to piss her off," drawled the large man still drumming his fingers on the table.

Shikamaru closed the door and leaned against it and replied with a small smirk, "It doesn't take much to piss off Ino."

"So, ask your questions, detective but make it quick... I want to get back to Emiko." growled out Kankuro, clearly at the end of his patience.

The police detective shrugged lazily before pushing away from the door and opening it up. He gestured that the man was free to go with a long sweep of his arm.

"No need, Mr. Sabaku...I got all I needed to know from Miss Tanaka and I am willing to bet that you won't be able to give any more information than what she has already provided. I suggest you and your girlfriend go home and relax for the remainder of the day. I'll be in touch with you if I have any more questions..." replied the officer lazily.

Kankuro stared at the police detective through narrowed eyes before shrugging and standing up from his chair.

"Okay... you're the boss, detective Nara... I'll see you later," said the large man with the kabuki tattoos before walking past the officer and out of the room.

Shikamaru shoved his hands in his pockets and watched in silence as the man stalked away in the direction of the ambulance.

_It didn't take a genius like him to figure out where the large man was off to in such a hurry._

_Yes – it was going to be interesting to see if Hana actually took his advice... the last thing he needed to see was another friend nursing a broken heart._

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Hana was waiting patiently for Kankuro's arrival when she caught sight of the dark haired man with the facial tattoos prowling over to her location.

"Akiko, I'm going to have to call you back... the boyfriend has arrived and you know how pissed he gets when I'm not paying him any attention... sure, I'll call you later...bye, Akiko." murmured the brunette into her cell phone before she ended the connection.

_This was just what she needed on her first day... another attempt on this guy's life. She really needed to get some answers from him... like what the hell was so important about this project of his that was worth killing the man over…_

"Who was that?" asked the dark haired man in a biting tone.

Hana raised an eyebrow, not surprised to see him looking so pissed off. Hell, she didn't blame him at all...

"My girlfriend, Akiko... she just canceling a date for drinks this evening. I just told her that I was going to be busy taking care of my man's needs..." replied the young woman, pinning him with a brief smoldering gaze.

Kankuro could feel his brain fry up from the images that little comment immediately placed into his mind.

_It was official... he can fully blame this sudden burst of raging hormones on his non-existent love life. Why else would her suggestive words bother him so much?_

A colorful tune rang out in the silence hanging between them, effectively dragging the large man out of his private musings.

Kankuro fished his cell phone out of his pocket with a frown and flipped it open to see who was calling.

"Fuck," murmured the man before reluctantly answering the phone.

"Yeah...yeah... I'm fine. There's no need to yell at me, Gaara. I'm not a two year old, you know..." grouched Kankuro into the cell phone, rolling his eyes as he continued to listen.

Hana raised an eyebrow as Kankuro gave a heavy sigh and handed her the phone, "He wants to talk to you, Emiko."

"Emiko speaking... yes, yes. Okay... no, stay there... we'll come and see you. Yes... see you soon." murmured Hana soothingly to the irate voice coming from the phone before hanging up.

"We need to go and see the boss man before we head for home, sweetheart. It seems this little attempt has gotten your brother's panties in a bunch," said the young woman calmly in an undertone, handing Kankuro back the cell phone.

The large man pushed the phone back into his pocket, grabbed Hana's hand and growled, "Well, we may as well get the shouting match out of the way then... Come on, Emiko...we mustn't keep the little dictator waiting..."

---------------------------- -----------------------------

"Gaara, you need to calm down... he's fine." replied Temari, trying to calm down the president of the company as he slammed the receiver down.

Gaara pushed his sister's hand off his shoulder and glared incensed at her.

"Temari, those fuckers _almost_ succeeded in eliminating our brother... in his own fucking lab!" hissed Gaara outraged.

"Gaara, you need to settle down. They didn't succeed and that's the important thing," sighed the blonde before walking over to the bay window.

"Detective Nara has the utmost confidence in _Emiko's_ ability to protect our brother. She has already proven herself more than capable at the task... a lot sooner than anyone had been expecting. It's testament to her expertise that those bastards failed," murmured Temari, staring out on the skyline.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to settle her rattled nerves.

_They were threatened enough by Kankuro to try and eliminate him in one of the places he was most comfortable in... it was truly terrifying to her._

Temari and Gaara looked over to the door as they heard a commotion outside in the reception area before their colorfully tattooed brother burst through the door with his leggy shadow in tow.

"Okay, Gaara... we're here. I suggest you get the ranting out of your system before we take up Detective Nara's suggestion and go home for the day," growled Kankuro, clearly pissed off.

A colorful little melody cut through the tension in the room as Hana pulled her cell phone out of her bag with her other hand.

"Hold that thought, gentlemen," murmured the young brunette with a small smile before she answered the phone.

"Akiko... yes, yes. No, we're chatting with his family before the boyfriend takes me home... yes, yes... that's fine," replied Hana to the person on the line.

Kankuro and Gaara continued to glare at each other until Hana's suddenly raised voice made them look at her in curiosity.

"What?! Are you sure that is the right thing to do? ...I see. No, I understand completely...no, you're absolutely correct... okay; I will let them know... when will we be expecting Hoshiko? Okay... I will let them know... thanks... I'll talk to you later, Akiko," murmured Hana before cutting the connection and walking over to the door to lock it.

"What's going on?" asked Gaara and Kankuro watching the woman intently.

"Well, Gaara - it looks like you are going to get your wish after all... you will be getting a new secretary on the books until we get this business sorted out," replied Hana in a calm voice.

"I don't understand," said Gaara with a frown.

"Akiko just told me that it looks like your company security has been compromised but it's hard to say how extensively right now. It appears that these guys may have an insider helping them out... Hoshiko is going to come out of retirement and will be assigned to keep an eye on things over here for a while. In the meantime, it looks like I will be moving in with lover boy here a lot sooner than we were both expecting." murmured the athletic brunette to her stunned audience.

Gaara continued to frown before his kanji tattoo jumped on his temple as he finally understood what the young woman was saying and replied in a shocked voice, "The woman who was here this morning is..."

"Yes, she was one of the best in the business until she decided to retire from the field a year ago and just work in the office," replied Hana in a deceptively casual tone.

_Yes – she too had been shocked to hear that Hinata would be returning to fieldwork but understood the necessity after talking to Kiba. If there was a mole in the company network, they needed to track down the source and silence it before the situation got too dangerous. The security breach must be serious enough to require the petite woman's unique set of skills…_

Hana turned to look at Kankuro and raising an elegant eyebrow asked, "Do you have a problem with the new living arrangements, darling?"

The large man gave the brunette with the red fangs slashing down her cheek bones a long look of contemplation before murmuring in a sexy growl, "No, I'm fine with you moving in... the question is, are you fine with being around me 24/7? It may be too much for you to handle."

Temari swiveled around completely from the bay window and stared at Kankuro in amazement.

_Did he just issue her a challenge? No way... was her workaholic brother being deliberately suggestive? He only met the woman this morning…unbelievable. _

Temari looked over at Gaara and wasn't surprised to see her brother's tattoo climb up on his temple in response to the double entendre.

They were further startled to hear the young woman tilt her head and laugh in pure delight at Kankuro's antics before she replied, "Yeah, I think I can deal with you just fine... just don't be surprised if I suddenly have this overwhelming urge to punish you when you get out of line..."

A wolfish grin broke across his face in remembrance of his earlier _punishment_ and with a devilish gleam in his dark emerald eyes, he murmured, "I'm looking forward to it."

Temari was starting to feel a little hot under the collar watching these two trade little pot shots at each other.

She cleared her throat and asked in a suspiciously strained voice, "So, when will we be expecting the new secretary to arrive?"

Hana looked over to the blonde in front of the bay window and shrugged.

"It depends on how quickly we can find a position in the company to place her... _Akiko _is currently looking at a list of management who has a need for a temporary secretary."

"Tell _Akiko_ that won't be necessary... she can work for me until this issue is resolved," growled out a reply from an unexpected source.

Temari shot her youngest brother a shocked look. She certainly wasn't expecting _him_ to act like this. If Temari didn't know any better, Gaara sounded almost...jealous.

_Well, this is certainly a day for surprises... Either it's a sign of the apocalypse or Hell must be freezing over._

Temari made a mental note to check the drinking water for drugs as she looked in mild amusement at the glare that Gaara was shooting everyone in the room who dared to try and cross him on this. No, he was definitely determined to say his way in this matter and no one was going to change his mind.

Hana tried to contain the unholy look of glee that threatened to appear on her face and replied, "In that case, you'll probably see Hoshiko first thing in the morning. I will call Akiko back and let her know."

"_Good luck, Gaara... you're going to need it if you think you have a chance in hell of trying to impress Hinata," thought the brunette woman privately._

Kankuro's voice cut into Hana's musings then and she looked up intrigued as the large man said, "It looks like work is out of the question for today, at least... unless you plan to give me a piece of your mind, Gaara... I think I will take _Emiko_ home."

Gaara looked down at the paperwork in front of him and gave his brother a negligent wave before replying in a bored tone, "No, we're done for now... I'm satisfied that everything is in hand... I'll see you tomorrow."

Temari continued to observe both her brothers in silence, watching idly as Kankuro reached over and grabbed the leggy brunette by the wrist again and stalked over to the door once more.

She chuckled softly to herself when she heard Hana teasingly tell Kankuro, "You know, as much as I enjoy having you drag me around like your prized spoil of war… I think my wrist is going to snap off after a week of this…"

Kankuro cursed as he felt his face go red from his embarrassment and he released his grip on the woman's arm as though it was a red hot coal.

Gaara and Temari watched the entertainment going on in front of them as Hana looped an arm through one of Kankuro's own and accidentally bumped her hip against him. They could clearly hear their brother hiss a low growl at the contact before the couple unlocked the door and walked out of the large office.

"Hmmph. I never thought I'd see the day that Kankuro would have a sudden interest in a woman. He's always been too obsessed with his work," murmured Gaara in a dead pan voice.

_I could say the same thing about you, Gaara… It's obvious you are equally affected by the thought of having Hinata around the office._

It amused the blonde no end to see these two notoriously emotionless brothers of hers were getting all primal over two women that they had only just met that morning.

_Yes – it was going to be interesting to see what was going to happen around here in the immediate future… especially when it came time for the two women to leave upon completion of their respective assignments. _

_Will Kankuro and Gaara let them walk away into the sunset or persuade them to stay?_

_It was hard to say… they were after all her brothers and those two were difficult to read at the best of times…_

Temari gave a small shrug before she walked over to the door and left the room.

As much as she enjoyed speculating on her brothers' fledgling love lives, they still had a business to run and that needed to come first.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:**

Apologies for the delay in posting a new chapter for this story. I have been sick but I am now feeling well enough to update my action story.

This is the raw chapter and like those things in life, is subject to revision at a later date. The chapter contains strong language and is appropriately rated to reflect this. If swearing offends you, please don't read the story. Simple, huh?

I like to dedicate the new chapter to the very cool **blaze da dragon **who keeps me regularly inspired and immensely entertained as well as to one of my beta readers – the long suffering **Judo Creature** who puts up with my idiosyncrasies and suggested that I write a Hana/Kankuro story in the first place!

Special katsuyo thanks and dedication to **icycreamluff** – no, I have no plans to give up on this story... promise. :D

Thank you to my readers…and special thanks for those brave enough to leave a review.

Big thanks to **Lostsoulofregret** for raising the issue about the characters' ages and generally keeping me honest.

The characters are in their mid-twenties, Hana is thirty.

Just a heads up – everyone working directly/indirectly with the clients has been given an alias.

_Hoshiko Watanabe_ – Hinata

_Emiko Tanaka –_ Hana

_Shinko_ – Shino

_Akiko_ – Kiba

A sentence in _Italics_ denotes the private thoughts of a character.

This chapter is inspired by the song "Brave" by Trapt.

**Disclaimer:** I honestly do not own or profit from my dealings with the Naruto characters… but we do meet regularly for afternoon tea inside my head every Thursday afternoon!

**Chapter Three – Unexpected Developments**

"Let's try this again, shall we?" murmured Hana in an amused tone.

Kankuro shook his head at her odd humor as they continued to stalk down the hallways of the main Suna Enterprises building.

He quite frankly didn't understand why she would find a near death encounter so damn funny but he guessed in her line of work, it pretty much came with the territory.

"Okay, since the lab is pretty much null and void as of a couple of hours ago, why don't we just head over to my car…" began the large tattooed man, only for his female companion to sharply shake her head.

A colorful tune rang out from the Hana's hand bag before the young woman had a chance to whip out a snappy retort.

"Excuse me, dearest…I think that may be our ride calling us…won't be a moment." Replied Hana casually, shooting the man a brief warning look that promised swift retribution if he so much as complained about the alternate arrangements.

"Why Hello, _Shin-ko…_yes…we'll be there in a moment….got it….see you soon." murmured Hana in that amused tone once more.

"What's so damn funny?!" growled out Kankuro watching the tall brunette snap the phone shut and give him a rather sexy half smile.

"You are, darling. Has anyone told you that you need to pull that stick out of your ass and give your spine a break once in a while? Such a grouch... I've always heard that all work and no play will do that to a man…" drawled out the young woman impishly.

Kankuro narrowed his emerald green eyes and shot Hana a dark look.

The infuriating woman merely raised an eyebrow and was now openly grinning at him.

_She was deliberately pulling his chain to get a rise out of him… curse the vixen – it was working!_

He leaned forward until their noses almost touched and murmured huskily, "Maybe that's the problem right there, Emiko… my job doesn't allow for much of a social life. So, does this mean that you're offering to play with me, then?"

Hana felt a small blush heat up her cheeks and she cursed silently at her school girl reaction to his flirting.

For a man who professed to have zero social life, he sure as hell was making up for lost time and making it quite clear to her what his future plans entailed.

The sensible part of her knew that she should probably nip this in the bud before it became too serious but instead she heard herself murmur back, "I'm not sure... do you play… rough?"

The comment hung between the couple as the phone rang once more.

Hana looked down in mild surprise at the phone still in her hand and answered the call, not noticing the flush that crept into the large man's face after she turned away.

"Alright, Shin-ko… We'll be there in a minute… don't get all bent out of shape! Yeah… well, it would be more your pleasure than mine, I'm sure." replied Hana to the caller before snapping the phone shut abruptly.

She grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him towards the exit, calling over her shoulder to her surprised victim, "We've got to move… our ride is getting antsy…so we better not keep _her_ waiting."

Kankuro shook his head slightly as he felt himself being dragged along behind the brunette amazon ahead of him.

_She was certainly a handful… but funny enough, he wasn't complaining._

------------------------------------

A sleek black executive car was pulled up in front of the office building as Hana and Kankuro finally exited the large complex.

The young woman covertly scanned the area, being careful to keep her charge behind her but nearby.

She swiftly strolled over to the waiting car and opened the door quickly, jerking her wrist sharply to propel the man into the interior of the car.

Hana tried to keep the smirk from appearing on her face as she distinctly heard a colorful curse come out of the large man's lips.

She raised an elegant eyebrow as she watched him rearrange those long and muscular legs of his before finally sliding into the car and closing the door.

"Smooth as always, Emiko…" murmured a dry voice from the driver's seat.

"Sorry, Shin-ko sweetie… you were in such a hurry that I didn't want to make you wait a minute longer… speaking of which… you're in a foul mood today… what bug crawled up your ass and died?" countered Hana with a small smirk as she heard Kankuro's indrawn breath over their conversation.

"Shut it, Emiko… you know you've always been more trouble than you're worth." replied the dry voice from the front, a hint of amusement now apparent in his tone.

Hana leaned forward onto the front seat, made a loud kissing sound and murmured, "You know I love it when you get like this, Shin-_ko_… Now why don't we get out of here and we can talk on the way to our destination."

"Great… just great… I have nut jobs hired to protect me from more nut jobs… lovely." groaned their client in an aggrieved tone.

Shino and Hana gave each other knowing looks before they started laughing.

"Relax, Kankuro… we just regularly want to kill each other… not you…it comes from being around someone as long as I have been around her… lucky, huh?" countered the man in the driver's seat as he released the hand brake and shifted the car into drive.

"Yeah, that's just swell…" replied Kankuro with a groan, closing his eyes and rubbing his forehead to ease the throbbing in his temple.

Hana slid back into her seat and clicked her seatbelt into place.

"I'm guessing by your mood, Akiko was in rare form, huh?" murmured the brunette to the man in the front.

"You would be correct, dearest Emiko… these creeps caught _her_ by surprise and you know how much _she_ loves that." murmured the tall man, deftly maneuvering the car through the late morning traffic.

Hana sighed and muttered, "Great…just great. We both know what that means… I'm just sorry that you're going to be the one dealing with the esteemed dragon lady around the office."

Kankuro watched the man nod his head and reply, "Don't worry about it... it's not as though I haven't seen this side of the boss before, right?"

"Problems?" muttered the large man with the kabuki tattoos from the side of his mouth to the leggy brunette sitting next to him.

"Yeah... but none that concern you directly... thank goodness. I will fill you in later, okay?" whispered Hana to the man seated beside her.

"So, brat... you sure as hell shocked the daylights out of me when you called to tell me that you were waiting out the front." said the athletic brunette aloud to the driver.

"You shouldn't be complaining, old lady... I'm a much better option than who was originally planned to pick up your sorry ass." replied the young man with a smile in his voice.

"Old lady? How _old _are you, Emiko?" asked Kankuro suddenly, raising an eyebrow when he heard the muffled chuckling coming from the man in the front of the vehicle.

Hana leaned forward and murmured seductively into the large man's ear, "What's wrong, gorgeous? You don't like older women? You know what they say...with age, comes experience."

Kankuro felt the blush heat up his face as the woman continued in a louder voice for the benefit of the other occupant of the car, "I'm three years older than you but five years older than the brat driving the car..."

Kankuro watched the man chuckle once more and shake his head at her comment, expertly driving the sleek automobile through the busy down town traffic.

A comfortable silence settled in the roomy interior of the car before the driver casually remarked, "So, first day on the job and already you've had an exciting morning. How many stitches did you get this time?"

Hana folded her arms and scoffed, "Not enough to be worth mentioning, brat..."

Kankuro felt the smile tug at his lips.

_They really did sound like the way his siblings acted when they weren't busy running a large company._

"You know, Kakashi is going to win this month if you keep slacking like that..." replied the driver with a small smirk.

"Pooh, as if I give a damn what that particular pervert thinks?! He's still sore that I was sent on that last assignment." groused Hana shifting her long legs.

Hana shot the tattooed man another side look that clearly stated that she would also explain what that meant at a later time.

"So, brat… you heading back to the office after you drop us off?" asked Hana with a serious edge to her voice.

Kankuro shot the young woman with the curious triangular tattoos on her cheeks a side glance, not missing the sudden change of her light bantering tone to one of cool professionalism.

There was a pregnant pause before the tall man in front answered in a similar tone, "Yes… why, do you have a message that you would like me to pass onto the dragon lady?"

"Yeah, I do… it looks like the big boss man himself has offered Hoshiko a position working for him."

The large man noticed the driver frowning slightly as he gripped the steering wheel before finally replying, "Are you sure that's a good idea? I heard about what happened this morning…it was hard not to...Hoshiko came back from that meeting in a foul mood. If he decides to follow through on this course of action, I have a feeling that the head honcho is going to need protection from the protection."

Hana and Shino's eyes widened in shock as they heard Kankuro reply, "My brother is a big boy. If he wants to take on your friend, he should be well aware of the risks…as I am."

A long silence enshrouded the atmosphere inside the car before the bespeckled driver finally murmured obscurely, "I see. Well, in that case...I wish your brother luck because...he's going to need it."

Kankuro frowned when he heard that odd comment and asked, "Why do you say that, Shin-_ko_?"

He caught sight of the driver returning his frown in the rear view mirror as he negligently shrugged his shoulder and replied, "Despite her outward appearance, Hoshiko is not a delicate wallflower. She has been through a lot in the past two years that would make most people want to cash out early. No offense but the impression I've gotten about your brother is that he's not afraid to go for what he wants and pretty much expects to get it...right now, the thing he wants is Hoshiko...and I know for a fact that she will fight him every inch of the way."

Kankuro leaned back in his seat then and crossed his arms, contemplating what the man in the front just revealed.

"Well, it will be a refreshing change from the usual for him then... I have feeling it's going to be a challenge that my brother will relish. I also think your friend will eventually succumb to my sibling's... unique charm." murmured the large man with a small smirk to his firm lips.

There was another prolonged stretch of silence within the confines of the car then before Shino and Hana both countered, "Wanna bet?"

Kankuro shifted his glance over at the young woman sitting next to him who was flashing a wide and challenging grin back at him before he looked up at the rear vision mirror to see the driver giving him a similar look.

"What are we wagering here?" replied the large man with an evil grin.

"You know the boss is going to want a piece of this, don't you?" murmured the driver dryly.

"Oh yeah... I know." smirked Hana with a knowing chuckle.

Hana and Shino looked back at the large man still sitting there with his arms folded and looking supremely confident.

"You're on, big guy. I'll accept your bet... your brother is going to hit the ground...hard." replied Hana with a sly smile.

"I'm in... she's going to eat him alive." concurred the man in the front seat.

The conversation in the car continued at a boisterous pace as the occupants hammered out the wager details all the way to their destination.

-------------------------- ----------------------

Hinata watched as the town car pulled up in the driveway of Kankuro's home. She watched with a raised eyebrow as Hana quickly emerged from the still running vehicle, closely followed by the client.

The young woman quickly glanced at the three people in front of her, not missing the fact that they were highly amused about something.

"So, which one of you is going to tell me what you three have found so hilarious about this morning's little event?" asked Hinata in a cool tone.

Hana looked over at Shino who casually shrugged his shoulder in response before shifting the town car into reverse and murmuring, "Hoshiko, I will see you back at the office."

"Why don't I show you around my place and you can tell Hoshiko the news when we're safely inside, okay?" said Kankuro, ushering the two women slightly ahead of him.

The two women walked up the stairs, taking time to covertly scout the area on either side of the stairs.

They turned slightly as Kankuro finally reached the top of the stairs with Hinata in front to quickly scan the security alarm and the locks for possible tampering as Hana protected the pair in front of the door.

"Okay, it's clean... Kankuro, why don't you open up the door now?" murmured Hinata, stepping back to stand next to her colleague as the large man punched in the code before pressing the button under the handle as he turned the key.

Hinata waited for Kankuro to push open the door before she walked through first, an electronic device in her hand scanning the front area of the house.

"Kankuro, you can go in now..." whispered Hana to the large man in front of her when she saw Hinata give the signal.

The large man prowled into the hallway of his home, dropping his keys onto the small table in the hallway before sitting down on the sofa to watch the two women as they continued their surveillance of his home.

Kankuro closed his eyes as his hand reached up to gently massage his temple, suddenly feeling the exhaustion course through his veins.

"You okay? You look done in." murmured a concerned voice behind him.

He cracked open an eyelid when he heard her voice and turned to see her looking at him with a worried look in her eye.

_When was the last time someone apart from his own family has expressed concern over his welfare... never._

_Hell – he knew it was her job to protect his sorry ass but she still managed to make it as though...she truly cared._

Kankuro sighed and replied, "I'm fine, Emiko... I'm just not used to my Mondays being so...exciting."

Hana chuckled softly and responded, "Yeah, I know whatcha mean, gorgeous."

The large man looked behind the tall brunette, frowning slightly.

"Where's Hoshiko?"

Hana suddenly grinned with a small wave of her hand and replied, "She had to go to the car to retrieve my suitcase... but she will be back shortly."

"Are you sure it's a smart idea for your friend to go back to the car by herself... especially with these guys out there?"

Hana laughed heartily and smirked, "Don't worry about Hoshiko... I would be feeling sorry about the poor bastard stupid enough to take her on..."

Kankuro paled slightly at her comment and Hana could help but comment, "What's wrong, lover? You starting to reconsider?"

The brunette felt the air lock in her throat at that look that Kankuro was now giving her with those incredible emerald green eyes of his.

"Hell...no, Emiko. I still think I'm right about this." growled out the tattooed man.

"Right about what?" murmured an amused feminine voice from the hallway.

The couple turned in unison to face the petite woman standing there with a large suitcase by her side.

_Shit._

Hana and Kankuro looked at each other briefly before returning their gaze back on the woman waiting for them to answer her question.

"Hoshiko, we managed to find you a position within Suna Enterprises and you'll be able to start first thing in the morning." replied Hana carefully.

Hinata smiled and exclaimed softly, "Well, that is good news! What's the position and the name of my new boss?"

"You will be the personal secretary for the president of Suna Enterprises." answered Kankuro, waiting for the dark haired woman to realize _just_ who that was...

It didn't take long for the resulting explosion to occur.

"WHAT?! Like hell I'll work for that red haired, arrogant...prick!" hissed out Hinata, glaring at Kankuro.

Hana cleared her throat, gaining her glaring friend's attention and replied, "Ahh, Hoshiko...I'm afraid that you don't have much choice... he's made it perfectly clear that you will be working for him and...no one else."

"I'll see you tomorrow at the office, Hoshiko." called out Hana as Hinata abruptly turned and stalked down the hallway to the front door.

The sound of the slamming front door reverberated throughout the house.

"Is she going to be okay?" asked Kankuro after a while, suddenly very concerned for his brother's wellbeing after seeing that promise of future retribution in the young woman's silver eyes before she stalked away.

Hana sighed and walked over to the suitcase.

"Yeah, she'll be fine after she goes to the gun range to blow off some steam." replied Hana sadly.

"You're kidding about the gun range, right?" asked the large man slightly aghast at her comment.

Hana gave a deep sigh and shook her head as she replied, "I wish I was... but that's probably where she's driven off to...after she's blown a few holes into a couple of paper targets that she's named in your brother's honor... she should be fine."

"I see." murmured Kankuro, walking over to where Hana stood and quickly picking up the suitcase before moving over to the stairs.

"I guess it's a good thing that my brother has a thick hide then... come on, Emiko...I'll show you to your room."

Hana watched that taut behind of his in silent admiration as the man climbed the stairs before following closely behind.

_This was one client she didn't mind following... hehehe._

Still, she was concerned about her friend's reaction to having to work in such close proximity to Gaara.

There was no denying that there was some type of attraction between them but she couldn't help but think that the brooding, cantankerous red-head had taken on more than he could handle in the form of Hinata.

A thought crossed Hana's mind then at the upcoming power struggle that was inevitable between those two and felt herself give a small shrug of her shoulder.

_Yeah – no point in worrying... like herself, Hinata will sort it out on her own._


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:**

Illness pretty much sucks the drive out of an author, especially when you're trying to write something with a lot of action in it but the good news is, I'm now feeling better. The muse has been on my case about it and as a result, I have been working like a dog. :D

This story is dedicated to one of my long suffering beta readers: **Judo Creature** for giving me the suggestion to write a Hana and Kankuro pairing story in the first place.

Special shout out to **icycreamluff**: as promised, another chapter in a short amount of time... I hope you enjoy it.

A sentence in _Italics_ denotes the private thoughts of a character.

Just a reminder – everyone working directly/indirectly with the clients has been given an alias.

_Hoshiko Watanabe_ – Hinata

_Emiko Tanaka –_ Hana

_Shinko_ – Shino

_Akiko_ – Kiba

This Chapter is inspired by the song "Still Frame" by Trapt.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto nor do I make a profit from it. So there. Enjoy, beautiful people, enjoy.

**Chapter four – Aftershock**

Kankuro walked down a narrow corridor, stopping in front of a door.

He pushed open the door, to reveal a bright and sunny guest room before walking over to the king sized bed.

"This will be your room for the duration of your...stay. If you need anything, my room is across the hallway." murmured the large man over his shoulder, depositing the suitcase onto the bed before walking over to the doorway.

Hana watched him in silence as he gently closed the door on his way out, presumably to his own room.

She was relieved that he didn't decide to stick around because she didn't know how long she could maintain this mask in place before she needed to give into the emotions she was suppressing since the bombing incident.

Hana sat down on the edge of the bed and finally gave into the tears.

Her shoulders shook slightly as the stress of the morning finally took its toll.

The tall brunette stared sadly at the floor, watching at the tears splashed unheeded onto the pale carpet under her feet.

As much as she privately acknowledged the immediate attraction between her and Kankuro, she realistically knew that Shikamaru was correct in warning her against acting on those feelings.

_It would only cause problems...or worse, get one or both of them killed._

"No...as much as I would like to... even though I do find you wildly attractive, Kankuro... I know it wouldn't be a smart idea to fall for the client." murmured Hana out loud, only for the silence of the room to mock her as the tears continued to run unheeded down her cheeks.

She didn't realize that Kankuro had paused outside her door when he heard her crying and stood there, ear against the door, listening to her cry but unwilling to interrupt.

The large man badly wanted to offer her a shoulder to cry on but wisely knew that it was best to leave her on her own... for the moment.

He stiffened when he heard her uttered comment, both in shock and delighted surprise before his brows slashed down in a frown when he finally understood what she was planning to do.

"I think you're wrong, Hana... you can't avoid what's happening between us...I realized that and you'll soon realize it yourself once you stop fighting it." replied Kankuro silently before pushing away from the door and quietly entering his own room.

_It had been a really long time that a woman had made him feel this way and he wasn't about to let her slip through his fingers so readily..._

---------------- ---------------- ------------------

_Shit! I feel stupid... it's been a long time since I've broken down like that._

Hana finally pulled herself together and raised a hand to scrub away the remaining tears before pushing herself up off the bed to walk resolutely over to the bathroom.

She gasped in delight when she saw the large old fashioned claw footed bathtub and felt a blush rise to her cheeks as a sudden image of sharing it with a certain tattooed robotics genius came to her mind.

Those large hands knowingly trailing over her flesh...those lips gently touching the column of her neck... her head dropping back to rest on that chest of his...

_Damn it to hell! What was wrong with her?!  
_

She brutally pushed aside such thoughts, knowing it was useless to yearn for something that wasn't going to eventuate anyway and walked briskly over to the bathtub.

Hana jerked on the knobs and soon the bathroom was filled with steam.

Quickly shrugging off her grimy clothes and releasing her hair from its severe pony tail, she quickly stepped under the hot needle like spray of the shower, hissing slightly as the water hit the fresh cuts and abrasions on her body.

Hana sighed as she tilted her head forward and felt the water cascade over her head and begin to sooth tired and sore muscles.

"Shit! I must be getting old... it never used to hurt this much when I was younger." grumped Hana privately to herself as she reached for the small bar of guest soap and began to lather up her body .

The brunette frowned slightly, noting how quiet it was suddenly and quickly shut off the shower, continuing to efficiently scrub her body while she intently listened.

Hana felt a small smile tug at the corner of her lips when she heard the shower in Kankuro's room running and could quite clearly hear him singing a racy little number slightly off-key.

_Well, he seems to be in a good mood about something... that's a good sign I guess._

She quickly switched the shower back on as she suddenly felt the almost foreign feeling of arousal immediately course through her blood like wild fire as the thought of that large man, all wet and slippery in the shower.

_Damn it ALL to hell! _

Hana slumped forward and rested her head against the cool tiles of the bathroom wall, the flush on her heated flesh nothing to do with the temperature of the shower.

She bit her lip and let out a husky groan as she fought the desire to walk over to Kankuro's bathroom, casually slip him behind him and offer to wash his broad back.

_Oh... it was so tempting!_

"No, Hana... remember... he's just a client and he'll just be another name on the books after the job is done." muttered Hana to herself, finally feeling the heat inside her starting to subside.

_When the hell did she get so damn weak when the thought of a naked male nearly reduced her to a sweltering mass of overactive hormones?_

Hana reached for the shampoo and quickly scrubbed her hair, finally ridding it of the building dust from the earlier bomb blast.

_No – she never succumbed to her emotions, especially in the execution of her duties and she sure as hell wasn't going to start doing so now..._

--------------- --------------- -----------------

Kankuro finished toweling his hair dry before he tossed the damp towel into the nearby clothes hamper and strolled bare footed and bare chested down the hallway, down the stairs and into the kitchen.

He quickly filled up the tea kettle and put it on while he set up the tea pot and...waited.

_She was wrong._

Kankuro rested his large elegant hands on the counter top surface and brooded over what he had overheard.

_He sure as hell didn't want things to end between them... before it had a chance to even begin._

"You know, that counter looks awfully clean to me... but that's a good plan. If I was dirt and I saw that look on your face, I wouldn't want to stick around either." murmured a now familiar female voice behind him.

Kankuro pushed away from the counter and switched off the stove as he heard the kettle whistle, pouring the hot water into the waiting pot and putting the lid back on.

"Do you take cream, sugar, honey or lemon in your green tea?" replied the large man as he turned to remove two cups from a nearby overhead cupboard.

"Just one sugar." returned Hana, an eyebrow raised in question at his cool, almost professional tone of voice.

_O -kay... something was definitely up..._

She watched in silence as he opened another cupboard to retrieve the sugar, his back muscles rippling as his arm pulled the door open.

Hana could feel her mouth go dry as her eyes continued to watch those muscles bunch and release, trying not to think how they would feel under her searching fingers.

The woman bit back the groan as Kankuro slid the sugar bowl onto the counter, filling their cups with fragrant green tea before walking over to the sink and turning to fully face her, his broad chest and tight abs clearly on display for her to admire, the drawstring pants riding low on his hips.

_Okay... so, it's been a long time since I've seen a man this hot... a really long time._

"You know, you're wrong." murmured a masculine voice in a quiet but serious undertone.

"I'm wrong about what...exactly?" replied Hana casually, trying not to look at that mouth watering chest of his.

_Must look at his face... _

Hana swallowed audibly as she took in that heated look in those dark emerald eyes of his.

_Okay... I'm in deep shit._

"You're wrong about us." returned the large man in that same serious undertone.

The brunette's eyes widened in shock before her delicately arched eyebrows slashed down in a forbidding frown.

"You were listening..." gritted out Hana in a low and decidedly dangerous whisper.

"Emiko, I have no intention of fading back in the wood work after this job of yours is done... I want you and I know you want me just as much... we're honest enough to realize that such an instant attraction doesn't happen that often... especially to a man like me." murmured Kankuro, now brooding a hole into the floor.

Hana frowned and asked, "What do you mean, Kankuro?"

Kankuro let out a gusty sigh and replied, "I'll be blunt. I'm not the type of man that gets the type of looks that I've been receiving from you the moment we met. Women see me more as a convenient tool for their own needs..."

Hana swallowed the hard lump that formed in her throat before choking out hoarsely, "I see."

She stared blindly at the steaming cup of tea sitting untouched on the counter top.

"It seems a waste...anyone can see that you're one hot piece of man flesh..." muttered Hana unthinkingly out loud.

Kankuro felt his firm lips curve upwards in a knowing smile at her softly uttered comment.

_Did she realize that she said that out loud? Probably not.  
_  
"So you think that... and yet, you still want to treat me like just another job..." replied Kankuro with an unreadable look in his eyes as he pushed himself away from the sink and walked towards the silent and now blushing woman staring daggers at him.

The large man gently tilted Hana's chin upwards until they were looking into each other's eyes.

"Fine, Emiko... we'll keep this arrangement strictly professional between us...for now." murmured Kankuro, his lips inches from her own.

Hana felt her knees go weak as he released her and walked over to the arched entrance way of the kitchen.

She watched in silence as he paused in the entrance way and quietly murmured, "We both know that this attraction we feel for each other isn't going to go away... but will continue to grow stronger until one or both of us finally gives into our needs."

Hana continued to stare at the empty archway long after the large kabuki tattooed man had disappeared down the hallway and into a room around the corner.

"Shit... why do I get the impression that I'm suddenly in big trouble..." muttered Hana under her breath as she stared at the cups of tea cooling on the counter.

----------------- ------------------ ---------------

Kankuro finally stepped away from the prototype he was working on and rubbed his tired eyes.

When he had stalked into his workshop, his first thought had been that he needed something to occupy his mind and hands, at least until he calmed his libido down.

He glanced over at the wall clock quietly ticking away and frowned.

_Shit! He'd been in here for a few hours now._

_She was probably hungry... and ready to rip his guts out... great._

He gave the screwdriver one last twist before he finally placed it down next to the robot and walked over to the door.

He switched off the lights and carefully locked the room behind him before softly calling out, "Emiko... are you there?"

"I'm right here, Kankuro." replied a voice equally softly from the direction of the sitting room.

He moved towards the voice until he came to the archway leading into the room and stood there, silently drinking in the sight of the long legged brunette sitting on his couch, quietly reading her packet of information.

He couldn't help but notice how comfortable and _right_ she looked sitting there.

"You managed to get much work done, then?" asked Hana, finally looking up from the papers she was reading.

Kankuro reached a large hand up to scratch the back of his head as he replied sheepishly, "Yeah, I did...thanks. Uh, I feel bad about leaving you on your own for the rest of the afternoon...and I noticed it's time for dinner... How about I take you out to make it up to you for making you wait?"

Hana couldn't keep the surprise from showing on her face as she asked, "You're offering to take me out?"

Kankuro frowned before murmuring, "Well... yeah. Is there a problem with that?"

Hana quickly shook her as she raised her hand and gave it a little wave in the negative as she smiled and quietly admitted, "No...not at all...it's just... this is the first time a client has offered to take me out because they got caught up with work...and kept me waiting... most folks really don't give a damn about the hired shadow."

"Well... get used to it, Emiko." growled out Kankuro, not liking her reply at all as he stalked off to get ready.

"And wear something...nice...preferably something that shows off a lot of leg." called out a male voice to the stunned female still sitting on the couch.

_Pervert._

Hana knew she should be offended by his high handedness but couldn't help the smirk that appeared on her lips as she automatically reached for her phone and called a familiar number.

"Yeah... it's me... I'm going to need a ride... Yeah, an hour's time should be plenty... great!...Yeah, I'll call you back later this evening...no problem... bye."

_Yeah... this job was getting more interesting by the moment._

---------------- -------------- -----------------

_Why the hell did he offer to take her out?_

Kankuro splashed cold water onto his tattooed visage before reaching for a clean towel from the nearby pile.

He looked at his reflection, noting that his features were largely unremarkable and yet, this woman, from the moment she met him had made it clear that she found him desirable.

_Just as he found her unconventional looks equally desirable._

Kankuro sighed and wiped away the remaining water droplets that escaped the first pass of the towel.

He gave his scowling visage one last cursory glance in the mirror before he walked out of the bathroom and into his bedroom.

Kankuro stopped in front of his large walk in closet and slid open the door with a sigh gusting out of his firm lips.

_It had been a very long time since he'd been out anywhere... much less a date._

A large hand flicked through the selection half heartedly before hovering over a hanger towards the back of the closet.

Temari had given him the outfit on his last birthday, declaring at the time that he would definitely make an impression on the ladies.

Of course, until now... wooing the fairer sex had never been a priority to him...

So, why was he bothering now?

_Because with her... he wanted to make the effort._

Kankuro plucked the outfit out of the closet and swiftly walked over to the bed, giving it one more jaundiced look before turning away and moving over to a chest of drawers against the wall.

He gave another aggrieved sigh as he shucked his drawstring pants and his underwear before opening up the top drawer to fish out a fresh pair of underwear as well as a pair of dress socks.

He quickly pulled on the underwear, pushed the drawer shut with a small slap and walked over to the bed, picking up the dress slacks and sliding them up his long muscular legs.

Kankuro quickly fastened the pants before reaching for the matching shirt and quickly finished getting dressed before he lost his nerve.

The large man walked over to the doorway and paused there, giving the room a longing look before disappearing down the hallway to meet his date in the living room.

-------------- --------------- --------------

It was that devilish half smile on the man's tattooed lips that gave Hana the distinct impression that he was up to something.

She had watched him gracefully descend the stairs, secretly admiring his choice of outfit.

Her dark brown eyes openly caressed the long line of leg encased in the black dress slacks that fit him to perfection before she slowly traveled up his body in a leisurely study of the man almost at the foot of the stairs.

"Could that thing even be called a skirt?" murmured a clearly delighted male voice.

Hana looked up from her perusal of his approaching figure and gave him a narrowed look.

"Shut it, Kankuro... You mentioned that you wanted to see leg... so, leg is what you get... Besides, judging by that look... you sure as hell don't seem to be complaining." growled out Hana in mild irritation.

"No... no... Emiko... I'm not complaining at all... I just wasn't expecting you to...accommodate me, that's all." replied Kankuro with a slight tilt of his firm lips.

He watched as she turned and stalked off down the hallway, noticing the little slit in the skirt as she moved away.

_Wow...that is an amazing skirt... Is she even wearing panties under that thing?_

"Yes, I'm wearing panties...pervert." replied a now amused female voice, watching the man's face flush brick red when he finally realized that he had spoken out loud.

"You deliberately put that outfit on just to torture me, didn't you?" grouched Hana, turning back to face the still slightly embarrassed man in front of her.

"Huh? What do you mean?" asked Kankuro, as he watched her walk over to him.

"These pants... they cling like a second skin... in all the right places." grouched Hana gesturing with a wave of her hand towards the dress slacks in question.

Kankuro leaned forward and whispered gruffly in her ear, "No - I wasn't thinking about torture when I put these on...I just figured that I'd give you something enjoyable to watch...that's all."

Hana's facial tattoos moved on her cheek bones as her smile got wider and murmured, "I see that I'm going to have to watch you closely then, Kankuro... very closely."

Hana's cell phone rang out and she answered it with a small sigh while giving the large man in front of her a rather saucy wink.

"Yeah... we're ready to go... no, I'm not sure... hang on..." murmured Hana before putting her hand over the mouthpiece.

"What's up?" asked Kankuro with a frown.

"Where are we going? Our driver needs to know..." murmured Hana with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh... uh, tell them we're going to Daniel." replied Kankuro, suddenly feeling nervous as he watched her relay the information to their driver.

_Oh shit... he forgot about that little detail... he was hoping to keep it as a surprise... _

_oh well._

The large man watched with a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as the knowing little half smirk appeared on Hana's face as she talked to the person on the phone.

"Oh... really?...hahah... thanks... see you in a minute...yeah, bye." murmured Hana with an evil glint in her eye as she hung up.

The brunette glanced over at the big man and noticed that he was looking as though he was starting to have regrets about this.

_Yeah... she could understand why he was feeling a little nervous... dating, even the business type of date wasn't high on his priorities._

She quickly moved in closer, leaned forward and touched a lean tattooed cheek with her fingertips before reaching up to kiss his cheek.

"Thank you... I've never had a man wanting to take me to a five star restaurant before... much less willing to go to the effort to dress up just for me..." whispered Hana with a smile on her lips as she felt his skin get warm once more.

Kankuro's hand reached up and tenderly caressed the back of her neck as he drew her closer to him with his other arm.

His lips lightly grazed her tattooed cheek, Hana's face flushing from the brief contact before the cell phone rang once more, its colorful tune causing the couple to abruptly step away from each other, the mood broken.

Hana out a small growl of frustration as she flipped open the phone and hissed, "What?!... yes, we're coming... you're a regular pain in the ass, you know that... don't you?"

She closed the phone with a small snap and murmured with a sigh, "We better get going, Kankuro... before the poor bastard starts frothing at the mouth."

The large man chuckled knowingly as he followed Hana to the front door.

_Yeah... he could get used to this..._

--------------- ------------- ---------------

Hana was in a foul mood and all it had taken to get her to this point was that knowing look that Shino had given her as she had come down to the waiting car, her elegantly dressed client trailing closely behind her.

The brunette glanced up to see Shino watching her fume in the back seat with that tiny smug smile on his face.

"Would you mind telling me what's going on with you two?" murmured Kankuro gruffly, silently observing Hana giving their driver death glares via the rear view mirror.

"If I didn't know any better... I would say that you two were on a date." drawled out Shino, silently watching Hana as she stiffened slightly.

"Yeah, straight to the point as always, Shinko." muttered the young woman under her breath with a frown.

Her eyes widened in surprise as she felt the large man sitting beside her place his hand gently on top of hers and smoothly reply, "No... as much as I would like it to be so...it's not a date. I just thought after what happened today that it would be nice to dress up and step out for a welcome diversion, Shinko... nothing more."

Hana bit back the smirk that was trying hard to break loose when she watched Shino's brows slash down as he contemplated Kankuro's words before murmuring in a serious and professional tone, "My apologies for jumping to the wrong conclusion, Kankuro... it's not often that we come across a considerate client in our line of work..."

Kankuro looked down at their joined hands on the seat and frowned slightly before finally replying, "Why do you both continue to work in this line of work if the majority of the clientèle are rude bastards?"

Hana smiled sadly and responded, "Well, apart from the fact that the pay and the benefits are really good... we believe that what we do has a purpose... someone has to step in and provide protection when the law is unable to do so."

"How you do cope when you've had a day like today?" asked Kankuro, removing his hand from Hana's own and folding his arms across his chest as he tilted his head back against the cushions and closed his eyes.

"We all learn to deal... in our own ways." replied Shino bluntly.

Kankuro's eyelids flicked open at Shino's comment and glanced covertly at the brunette sitting stiffly beside him.

_Deal... I see._

"I understand." murmured Kankuro after a while.

The car slowed down as Shino turned and maneuvered the town car up a long drive.

He finally brought the vehicle to a complete stop as soon as they were directly in front of the restaurant.

"Okay, we're here... Emiko, I'll be waiting for your call... have fun." murmured Shino, still looking ahead.

Hana leaned forward and touched her co-worker and friend on the shoulder as she quietly replied, "Shinko...thank you."

Kankuro quickly averted his eyes, the flush of arousal and desire stinging his face as he got a glimpse of her sheer panties when she bent forward.

_Gargh! Only __**she**__ would classify that skimpy little scrap of nothing as underwear!_

_Is she trying to kill me?!_

He waited for Hana to slide back and give him a cursory glance before she finally opened the car door and exited the vehicle.

Kankuro waited until the door closed and quietly confessed, "I do plan to ask her out once she's no longer my official shadow though."

Shino glanced up at the large man's reflection in the rear vision mirror as they heard the door handle starting to turn.

The half smirk was back on Shino's lips as he nodded in understanding and watched in silence as Hana retrieved her client from the back of the vehicle.

_Anyone willing to take on Hana wasn't that bad in his books. _

_He wasn't blind... he could tell when he picked them up earlier at the office and again this evening, that they were attracted to each other..._

Shino heard the passenger door shut as he continued to observe the striking pair until they finally disappeared into the interior of the restaurant.

"Well good luck, Kankuro... you're going to need it yourself - dealing with her." muttered the tall man under his breath before he drove away from the curb and down the road.

-------------- --------------- ---------------

"What's up, Emiko?" asked Kankuro quietly.

They had been enjoying a leisurely dinner and each other's company when he had felt her hand tighten up under his own.

Hana continued to gaze at the large man with the kabuki tattoos on his face and smiled brightly.

The brunette leaned forward, reaching up to trail a hand up the side of his face as she softly murmured, "We're being observed, gorgeous... hired thugs... nine o'clock..."

"No, Kankuro... don't look...never, _ever_, let them know that they've been spotted." continued Hana in a conversational tone when she saw his beautiful emerald green eyes darting towards the location she mentioned as her hand tensed slightly on his cheek and her foot lightly grazed his leg.

Kankuro uttered a soft groan at the unintentional caress and closed his eyes in an effort to calm down the fire that flared up inside of him.

"When this is said and done, I'm taking you out on a proper date..." hissed out Kankuro from the side of his tattooed mouth, his eyelids flicking open to pin his tormentor with a scorching glance.

"Aww, I don't know, Kankuro... as far as first dates go... this one rates pretty high.." remarked Hana candidly, privately cursing herself when she felt the blush sting her cheekbones.

"Really?" replied Kankuro with a small smirk to his lips.

Hana gave him a toothy grin in return and murmured, "Yes... really."

She continued to trail her hand up and down his lean jawline as she felt her phone vibrate next to her hip.

She dropped their joined hands onto her lap and covertly moved her hand to switch on the phone to activate the tiny headset.

"Speak." Hana softly uttered as she watched the large man in front of her give her a sexy little half smile as one of her fingers brushed his lips.

The woman with the triangular tattoos listened in silence as she continued to touch Kankuro.

Hana broke eye contact with the large man as her eyes flickered down at the table before she covertly gazed over at their tails, sitting three tables over.

"Yeah... two... uh huh... yeah, we're having a great time... Okay... not a problem." murmured Hana to her caller before brushing her finger over the button and ending the call.

She returned her hand back to the man and watched in mild amusement as he brought it to his lips to kiss the top of her hand.

"Are they disgusted by our antics yet?" murmured Kankuro against her skin.

"Who knows... because right now, I don't give a shit what they think." returned Hana with a sultry half smile.

"Is everything okay?" asked Kankuro in a deceptively casual tone.

"Why don't you let the waiter know that you're ready for the check?" murmured Hana lazily, swallowing the small sigh that came to her lips as he dropped her hand and turned to signal for their waiter.

She frowned slightly as she caught movement at the corner of her peripheral vision as the two hired men also signaled for the server.

_Shit... these guys aren't even subtle... great._

She discreetly scanned the restaurant, checking for possible exits as she assessed the threat.

She waited until Kankuro engaged the recently arrived server in conversation to slide a hand down and press a button to speed dial a number.

"Hey, old lady... I take it that your shadows are on the move?" spoke a male voice in her ear piece.

"Yeah... where are you?" replied Hana in a serious undertone while she continued to smile sweetly at Kankuro.

"I'm just around the corner... where do you want me to meet you?" asked the voice.

Hana quickly scanned the exits once more and silently eliminated them one by one in her head before finally replying, "Service exit. Ten minutes."

She caught a glimpse of something metallic as one of the hired men shifted in his seat and her own eyes narrowed as she continued her discreet surveillance of the threat as the check arrived and Kankuro handed over his credit card to the smiling waiter.

"Be careful, brat... they're hot."

There was a pregnant pause on the other end of the line before the voice murmured, "I understand... see you shortly."

"Is everything okay?" murmured a concerned voice from across the table as Hana cut the connection to the call.

She leaned forward, sliding a hand up into his hair, pulled him close and whispered into his ear, "It's not safe for you here... we need to give those shadows of ours the slip... so, follow my lead...okay?"

Kankuro nodded as Hana gave him a lingering caress on his cheekbone before finally slipping back into her seat.

The server arrived back at the table with the credit card slip and Kankuro's credit card.

Hana watched the man hand Kankuro back his card as well as the slip to sign and waited for him to turn to leave before asking, "Excuse me? Could you tell me where the bathrooms are?"

The waiter smiled in understanding and pointed over to an area close to the server's station.

The brunette waited until the server had left before murmuring loud enough to be heard "Sweetheart, Do you mind if we make a side trip before we leave?"

Kankuro stood up and walked over to help Hana out of her chair and replied in an aggravated tone, "No, I don't mind at all... I guess you want me to wait for you outside and hold your purse again?"

Hana held back the smirk as she heard a few snickers throughout the restaurant at Kankuro's gripe and she cooed, "Oh darling... that would be wonderful... you know there's no way I want to scuff up my good hand bag on a rest room floor."

The young woman was tempted to start laughing hard when she felt his hand under her elbow, guiding her to the rest rooms grouching, "Why is it that I'm cursed with a woman whose bladder is the approximate size of an acorn?"

_It had been a while since she had this much fun on a job... especially when the client was as smart and quick-witted as Kankuro._

"Lah – the size of my bladder is the last thing you ever think about when you're around me... and you know it!" countered Hana with a knowing laugh.

The young woman slyly glanced over her shoulder as they made their way through the sea of tables and watched with a mixture of glee and malicious delight as the two hired shadows shrugged and sat back down.

_Hmmph... just as I thought... dumb as a box of rocks..._

Hana waited until they disappeared down the little hallway and out of sight of the two thugs before tugging gently on Kankuro's large hand and murmuring, "Let's go, Kankuro... we're leaving here via the kitchen... but we better hurry... one of them will be back this way to check up on us... it doesn't give us much time."

The large man merely nodded as he allowed Hana to pull him along behind her as she expertly weaved her way through the extremely busy kitchen, garnering curious stares from the staff.

Hana quickly looked back before cautiously pushing open the back door and exiting the premises first, with Kankuro following close behind.

Hana pushed a button on her phone as she continued to look behind them, listening for signs that their escape had been discovered.

"Okay, old lady... I see you." replied a male voice before hanging up.

They didn't have to wait for long when they noticed the lights of a waiting car flash once before driving up to the service entrance.

Hana quickly jerked open the door and ushered Kankuro inside as she could hear muffled shouts coming from inside the restaurant.

_Damn it all to hell!_

"Get in, Kankuro... while I quickly deal with this baka..." growled out Hana in a low undertone, dropping a hand down to her side and reaching into a small pouch strapped discreetly to her thigh.

The large man slid quickly into the vehicle, just as one of the shadows emerged from the exit.

"I found them!" shouted the man, reaching inside his coat for his gun.

The man let out a guttural scream as the small star that the brunette quickly launched with a flick of her wrist bit deeply into the man's hand with deadly accuracy.

Hana quickly got into the car and closed the door with a certain amount of urgency.

"So, you going to let him bleed?" murmured Shino dryly as they swiftly drove away from the restaurant.

"He's not going to bleed too badly if he leaves it in until he reaches a medical facility... Anyway...consider it payback for trying to blow us up this morning...bastards!" replied  
Hana sourly before glancing over at Kankuro who was staring back at her in mild dismay.

She reached up and laid a soft hand against the man's lean cheek.

"I'm sorry about that, Kankuro... are you okay?" asked Hana, now concerned that the man was going into shock.

The man with the kabuki tattoos blinked once before smiling wryly and nodding.

"Yeah, I'm fine... just remind me to never get on your bad side... okay?" responded the large man with a wide grin.

"Shut it, Shinko." growled out Hana as she heard him let out a low and knowing chuckle at Kankuro's comment.

"Emiko... stop worrying... I'm just not used to being around a woman who can look after herself and then some..." murmured Kankuro wryly.

Hana let out a sigh as she moved her hand away, closed her eyes and leaned back into the seat, relaxing now that the imminent danger had passed.

"I am curious about one thing though..." drawled out Kankuro.

The brunette cracked open an eyelid and gazed at the large man sitting beside her with his arms folded across his broad chest.

"Oh? And what would that be, Kankuro?" asked Hana, a little suspicious of that evil little smirk of his.

"Where the hell did you manage to stash weapons in a skirt that tiny? I didn't see you reach into your handbag..." countered the large man, an elegant eyebrow raised in question.

"Not one word, Shinko..." growled out Hana as she watched the tall man struggling to hold back another chuckle.

Shino bit the inside of his cheek as he tried hard to hold himself in check and continued to glance up at the rear vision mirror to look back at the couple sitting in the back seat.

_Yeah – they were definitely more than a match for each other... it was going to be interesting to see how long the "hands off" policy would last._

------------------- ---------------- ---------------

"Okay, we're clear here... you can go back to base now, brat." murmured Hana to the voice on the end of the phone.

"Okay, old lady... don't forget to report in or I'm going to hear about it in the morning." returned a male voice on the other end.

"Yeah, I'll do it once Kankuro is settled in for the evening... see you tomorrow, Shinko." replied Hana with a smile.

"Alright...goodnight, Emiko." murmured the male before he hung up.

Hana flipped the cell phone closed as she watched the sleek town car flash its lights once before driving off down the darkened streets and finally disappearing from view.

"Is everything fine?" murmured a smoky male voice behind the brunette.

Hana turned and grinned at the large figure standing in the hallway watching her in silence.

She nodded and replied with a small smile, "Yeah...everything is just fine, Kankuro. I just need to report in but that can wait until we get you settled in for the evening."

Kankuro stood vigil as the young woman closed the front door , sliding the dead bolt into place before activating the alarm.

Hana walked over and looped an arm through his and murmured, "I imagine you're pretty tired, Kankuro... How about I drag you off to bed?"

She heard a softly uttered groan and looked up to find Kankuro looking back at her, flushing brick red with a mixture of shock and desire at her comment.

_Shit! She did not mean for that to come out so suggestive... damn it all to hell!_

His husky laughter echoed throughout the empty townhouse and Hana felt her face flaming scarlet when she realized that she had once again made a fool out of herself and spoken her thoughts out aloud.

_She seemed to be doing that a lot today around him..._

"Come on, Emiko... why don't you accompany me upstairs and then you can make that call, hmm?" replied Kankuro, taking pity on the poor woman whose triangular tattoos seem to blending in with her red cheeks.

Hana smiled gratefully and walked slightly ahead of the man, keeping alert for any signs of intruders.

They reached the top of the stairs and continued down the hallway, Hana's arm not once leaving its spot on Kankuro's arm as she led the way to the man's bedroom.

She turned on the lights, standing on the threshold of the room and observing it in silence before finally replying to the man behind her with a suddenly dry throat, "You can go in now, Kankuro."

Hana nervously swallowed and strolled over to the bathroom, flicking on the light and after a while, muttered under her breath, "Holy mother... another claw foot bathtub... great... just wonderful."

She placed a hand in front of her nose as she felt a tiny tell-tale trickle begin as those images she had of her sharing the bath tub with the large man in the other room filtered back into her mind.

"Okay, It's clear in here... I will be in my room. Goodnight, Kankuro." called out Hana hurriedly as she dashed to the bedroom door, her hand still under her nose.

Kankuro watched from his spot on the bed as the leggy brunette fled his room as though the hounds of hell were hot on her heels.

He waited until he heard her go into her own room and walked over to the bathroom, curious to see what it was about his bathroom that had spooked her.

Kankuro frowned as he stood in the exact spot that Hana was and could only see the large old fashioned claw footed bath tub directly in front of him.

He shrugged and turned to leave the room when a small bright spot on the white tiled floor caught his eye.

The large tattooed man stared at it in shock and dismay before something clicked in his head.

_Well, well... I wonder what you were thinking about..._

Kankuro smirked and plucked a tissue from a box on the counter and wiped up the small spot of blood from the floor.

_If the sight of his bath tub affected her like that... he could only imagine what would happen if she ever walked in on him..._

Yes, it was certainly a heady thought.

------------------- ----------------- ----------------

Hana cleaned up and dressed in a comfortable pair of lounging pants with a matching tank top.

She walked over to her bag, retrieved her cell phone and slid onto the large bed.

The woman flipped it open, gave a small sigh and dialed a familiar number before lifting it up to her ear.

"Emiko! It's about fucking time you reported in!" growled out her brother, clearly pissed.

"Sheesh... you're certainly in a shitty mood!" grouched out Hana.

Kiba let out a frustrated sigh and murmured gruffly, "Sorry, Emiko... I didn't mean to snap like that... I've just been worried sick since the bombing this morning and then this little incident tonight..."

"No... no need to apologize, Akiko... we're actually fine... he's certainly a lot more calmer than the majority of clients in his position." returned Hana with a sigh.

"Yes, Shinko mentioned that the man was more intrigued as to where you stashed your weapon's pouch more than anything else." murmured Kiba with a sly smirk in his voice.

"Yeah, for a self confessed workaholic... he's got quite the perverted streak." countered Hana with a small laugh.

There was a pregnant pause on the other end of the line before Kiba spoke in a serious tone, " I also got a call from Shikamaru this afternoon... he mentioned in passing that your client has taken a shine to you... and that it was obvious to him that the feeling was mutual."

"Akiko..." began Hana, only for Kiba to cut her off.

"No, Emiko...please... let me finish. I may be your boss but I'm also your brother. I'm not going to tell you who you should or should not be attracted to... despite what other well-meaning people suggest." replied Kiba before continuing in a gruff undertone, "If you want to see this guy after all this is said and done...I'm not going to stop you."

There was silence on the line before Hana whispered out, "Akiko... thank you."

"No... you can thank Shinko... we had quite the discussion when he got back to the office. Apparently your client made quite the impression on him... and the fact that it's been years since you've been remotely attracted to someone..." trailed off Kiba, a hopeful note in his voice.

"I see. So, it's more the fear that I'm going to end up a dried up old maid that's fueling this." griped Hana sourly.

An embarrassed chuckle filled the line as her brother sheepishly replied, "Yeah, a little...Emiko... just chalk it down to me expressing some brotherly concern, that's all."

There was a pregnant pause before Hana murmured in a serious undertone, "Speaking of the client... Akiko – I need you to drop my kit off as well as my permit at the townhouse ...tonight."

The silence was deafening as Hana waited for her sibling's response.

"It's that bad, huh? So, have you had a chat yet regarding what the hell he is working on?" replied Kiba finally with a deep sigh.

"Not yet... we haven't had the opportunity to chat... as exciting as what today has been." murmured Hana dryly.

"Yeah, yeah... I know exactly what you mean... I never thought I would ever say this but I'm going to be relieved to have Hoshiko out of the office tomorrow." responded Kiba with another deep sigh.

"I take it the gun range didn't help this time, then?" asked Hana, suddenly concerned.

"Hell, no! She was still in a rare mood... so, it's going to be interesting to see what happens tomorrow morning." replied her sibling.

There was a long pause before Hana finally asked, "So, are you in?"

She smiled as she heard her brother let out a decidedly evil chuckle and murmured, "Shit, yes... I haven't had this much fun since she and Naruto were first dating."

Hana laughed knowingly and replied, "Yes, I know what you mean... we all thought she was going to torch the building with her constant blushing whenever he showed up."

The brunette heard her brother laughing and waited for him to calm down before asking, "So, who's your pick in this clash of wills?"

"I'm going with the red-haired prick." replied Kiba with a smirk.

Hana groaned remembering Hinata's earlier outburst and muttered, "So, she told her, huh?"

Her sibling's knowing laughter was answer enough.

"So, I'll see you out the front in twenty minutes then?" asked Hana with a sigh.

"Yeah... I'll give you the usual signal, okay?" replied Kiba before hanging up.

Hana flipped her phone closed and stared at it for a moment while her other hand reached up to rub her forehead thoughtfully.

"What the hell have I signed myself up for this time?" muttered Hana under her breath.

---------------- ------------------ ----------------

"Where is he?" murmured the amused voice of her sibling.

Hana leisurely strolled down the garden path as she covertly continued to look around her.

She walked over to the figure lounging indolently against the side of a dark vehicle.

"He's reading in bed but he knows that he needs to stay in his room." returned Hana with a small smirk to her lips.

"I see. So – I'm curious, Emiko... is he as striking as his photo suggests?" replied Kiba, the curiosity apparent in his tone.

"Nah – He's even better up close and personal." countered Hana with a wolfish grin.

"Why am I not surprised to hear that..." muttered the man under his breath before speaking in a louder voice as he flipped open the trunk, "Emiko, I brought what you asked for... why don't you check it to see if everything is in order... After all, it's been a long time since you needed this stuff on a job."

Hana followed her brother to the back of the vehicle and slid a finger under the case to disarm the small trigger on the lock.

She pushed the buttons for the security code and heard the soft click of the case opening as the lid flipped open with a soft sigh.

Hana stared at the contents for a long time, her practiced eye went over every piece of equipment in the case.

"Well, I've never needed this stuff for a job until now..." murmured Hana absently as a finger reached out to caress the handle of one of the weapons.

"Yeah, Shinko told me that the tails were carrying... which means that they're done playing." replied Kiba in a gruff voice.

"Yeah – I'm not taking any chances... not after the first day I've had." responded Hana with a small growl.

Hana frowned slightly as a sudden recollection crossed her mind while she continued to look at her little arsenal and murmured in a dark undertone, "Hey Akiko... I just had a brain wave."

Kiba returned his sibling's frown, not liking her comment at all but asked, "What's on your mind, Emiko?"

"When is my client set to deliver his new invention?" murmured Hana, watching her brother's face, unsurprised to see his eyes widen in understanding.

"The prototype is due to be unveiled at a press conference in less than two weeks time... and before you ask, it's common knowledge in the industry that Suna Enterprises has a big announcement to make. Why?" replied Kiba, now full of curiosity.

Hana quickly snapped down the lid and swept up the case from the back of the vehicle.

She nodded her thanks as Kiba reached into his pocket and silently handed over a small card.

She gave her brother a penetrating look and muttered quietly, "They blew up the wrong lab."

Kiba watched his sister swiftly walk back up to the dark townhouse and disappear inside before finally murmuring the word that immediately came to mind as that realization sunk in.

"Fuck."


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:**

The story is dedicated to one of my dearest beta readers, the fabulous **Judo Creature**.

Chapter also dedicated to **Icycreamluff**, **blaze da dragon** and **Tomboygirl21** – thank you for your continued support and encouragement, especially when I was feeling less than stellar.

This story contains bad language and is rated for a mature audience.

A sentence in _Italics_ denotes the private thoughts of a character.

Lilly the household and security robot mentioned in the story is a real invention.

It's called NUVO and it's manufactured by ZMP Inc.

Yes – the hand gun mentioned in this chapter does exist in the real world as well.

This chapter is inspired by the song "Breathe" by The Prodigy.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or the characters. I don't make a red cent out off my fan fiction. I go through this angst on a regular basis just to satisfy your ravenous literary needs. Enjoy!

**Chapter Five – Predator and Prey**

Kankuro walked into the kitchen to find the athletic brunette that had been haunting his dreams staring out the kitchen window, sipping a cup of green tea.

There was a small radio on the counter set on a morning talk show and he frowned slightly at the odd sight but shrugged, thinking that there was probably an excellent reason for its appearance in the kitchen.

"We need to have a chat and no, it can't wait." murmured the woman, not turning around, her tea cup in front of her face.

The large man raised an elegant eyebrow and moved over to the cupboard to get a teacup.

He walked over to the counter, picked up the teapot, pouring the hot tea into his cup and growled softly, "Fine...where do you want to have this chat?"

Hana took a sip of her tea and murmured, "We can have it here in the kitchen, in the living room or... in your _real _lab... your choice."

Kankuro quickly put the pot down and looked at the brunette's slim back in shock before finally replying in a gruff tone, "When did you figure it out?"

"I put two and two together last night when I talked to the boss and found out that your prototype deadline was coming up... and that got me thinking...some things quite frankly didn't add up...like the fact that you didn't seem too broken up over the thought of losing your work..." murmured Hana, still staring out the window, the tea cup not far from her lips.

Kankuro sighed and replied, "Would it hurt to turn around and talk to my face?"

"Probably not." responded Hana with what sounded suspiciously like a smirk in her voice, still staring out the window.

The large man with the kabuki tattoos cursed under his breath and pushed a hand through his tousled locks before stalking over to where the woman stood and braced his arms on either side of her body.

Hana held her breath as she felt that large body press against her back.

She could tell that he was aggravated by the fact that she didn't turn around but it was deliberate on her part. A hand reached out and carefully placed the tea cup on the counter and waited for Kankuro to make his move.

The woman with the triangular tattoos felt his breath feather her cheek then as he leaned close and a small moan escaped through her parted lips as she turned slightly to cup his cheek.

"The house is being watched, gorgeous... I suggest you turn me around and lift me up on the counter... We can talk then." whispered Hana as she placed a soft kiss on the man's lips.

Kankuro did as she asked, liking the feel of that tiny waist of hers in his large hands, her lithe body sliding against his as he lifted her up onto the counter.

He bit back a groan as he felt those long legs of hers wrap around his waist and he couldn't help himself as he hauled her against his broad chest, capturing her lips in a heated kiss.

His hand reached up and released her hair from its severe pony tail, feeling its dark silky texture caress him as it fell about her face.

He heard her let out a soft moan as her own hand reached up and buried itself into the back of his scalp, tugging him closer and deepening the kiss.

They continued to kiss for a while before they reluctantly pulled away from each other, both panting softly from the explosiveness of their shared kiss.

Kankuro stepped back and shoved an agitated hand from his hand and murmured, "Kami, Emiko... my apologies. I just wasn't expecting..."

Hana could feel the sting of her blush on her cheeks and muttered, "Kankuro...there's no need to apologize. It's kind of obvious that we both enjoyed what just happened..."

She could feel the desire humming through her body as she watched the large man prowl back to his forgotten tea on the counter.

Kankuro lifted up the cup of tea and took a comforting sip, trying to will his body to calm down.

_Hell! What the fuck had just happened?! All it had taken was the feel of her legs wrapping around his waist for him to lose it..._

He placed his cup back down on the counter with a click and roughly cleared his throat.

"Shit... I always seem to act inappropriately around you..." murmured the large tattooed man with a heart felt sigh.

"And it's only the second day too!" replied Hana with a decidedly cheerful tone in her voice.

Kankuro whipped his head around, pinning the smiling woman with a piercing gaze and growled, "Damn it! It's not funny... what is it about you that makes me want to tear your panties off, hitch your legs over my shoulders and drive myself deep into your body?"

Hana felt her mouth go dry as the man's aggrieved comment and her face began to flush darkly in arousal at his words.

"I don't know... you tell me..." murmured Hana spontaneously, her pink tongue darting out to lick at suddenly dry lips.

Hana watched his beautiful eyes widen in shock, a dark flush now high on his cheeks and heard the indrawn hiss of his breath as those emerald orbs of his tracked the path of her tongue.

_Did she have any idea how absolutely stunning she looked leaning back on his counter, her hair about her face, her lips slightly puffy from their shared kiss and that look of desire in her eyes?_

_Probably not._

Hana frowned in concern as she saw a telling look of vulnerability flicker through the depths of his eyes before it was gone.

"Are you okay, Kankuro?" asked Hana quietly, all teasing gone from her at that brief glimmer of his true emotions emerging to the surface.

Kankuro looked away then and confessed gruffly, "No – I'm not okay... I haven't been okay since you walked through that office door yesterday... you stir up a lot of emotions that I'm not used to feeling ...and I'm ...confused."

Hana slid off the counter and walked over to the brooding man, sliding her arms around his large body as she hugged him from behind.

"Kankuro... if it helps... I'm just as confused... this has never happened to me before, either..." whispered Hana as she rested her chin against his shoulder.

Hana stood there, holding him in her arms and just enjoying the feeling of being around him.

After a while, she heard him finally quietly ask, "So, what part of it is just for show and what's real? I know it's pretend but still..."

Hana rested her tattooed cheek against his back and listened to his heart beating before replying in a soft voice, "I'll be honest with you... for us, this is pretty real."

She felt him swallow before she heard him gruffly murmur, "I'm relieved to hear that...because I didn't think I was imagining this mutual attraction between us."

Hana sighed and allowed a hand to lazily trail down his chiseled torso, a small smile tugging at her lips as she heard the breath hitch in his chest.

"No... It's not your imagination... I find you very...very...attractive." murmured Hana in a sultry voice.

A low groan echoed loudly in the kitchen before Kankuro abruptly turned around and picked up the surprised woman.

"Where are we going?" asked Hana, as she watched in amusement as the large man walked briskly out into the hallway and over to a coded door.

"We're going to have a chat and then I'm going to kiss you senseless...do you have a problem with that?" growled out Kankuro.

"No – none at all." replied Hana happily.

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Hana was pushed up against the wall as soon as they entered the room under the stairs and felt the firm pressure of Kankuro's lips descend onto her own.

Her hands buried into the back of his scalp and deepened the kiss as the large tattooed man let out a raspy groan into Hana's mouth and braced the wall next to the young woman's head.

"Mmm... that was very nice... but what happened to having our talk first?" murmured Hana breathlessly as Kankuro finally released her lips and tried to catch his breath as he rested his forehead against the cool concrete wall.

"I changed my mind." countered Kankuro with a soft husky laugh.

Hana chuckled knowingly as she slid a hand forward and cupped the side of his jaw.

"Well, I certainly don't mind the small change in the itinerary as long as I can get more of the same after our little chat, okay?" replied the woman with a wolfish grin.

"It seems fair to me." murmured Kankuro with a small smile as he reluctantly pushed himself away from the wall and allowed the athletic brunette to slip down into the gap.

"Why don't you show me what you're working on, Dr. Frankenstein?" countered Hana with a small push.

"You figured that out too, huh?" asked Kankuro, now impressed with this woman's deductions.

"Well, the Frankenstein bit I was taking a guess on but the doctorate….yeah - that was the easy one to figure out. The project had to be pretty damn special to cause this kind of interest. You're too intelligent to be a mere gadget hack, despite your low key exterior. Your library of books in the living room indicated a very well educated man and the heavy textbooks piled haphazardly on robot technology on the bottom shelf hinted at a graduate education." retorted Hana with a knowing smirk.

"I see nothing escapes your notice, beautiful..." muttered Kankuro under his breath as he pulled the brunette behind him over to the stainless steel work bench.

"Not really...holy shit, Kankuro... this is amazing! How much do you have left to do until the prototype is completed?" whispered Hana in awe as she stepped out from behind the large man, reached out and touched the highly lacquered surface with a finger.

"It's pretty much done. When I realized that someone was trying to kill me, it made me more tenacious to complete the project ahead of the deadline schedule." replied Kankuro gruffly, feeling the ruddy blush come to his cheeks at her obvious admiration of his skill.

"Okay, I know it's a robot but what does it do? It must be something pretty damn special for the competition to try and kill you." murmured the brunette with a frown, now deep in thought.

"You're right – it is special. It's a household and security robotic unit that can be activated remotely via your cell phone or alternatively, it can identify its owner by their vocal signature." replied the large man with a small smile of satisfaction on his face.

"May I?" asked Hana, gesturing to the robot on the table.

Hana bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing when she saw the ruddy glow appear prominently on his cheekbones once more.

He wasn't used to people admiring and wanting to check out his work… it was cute and rather refreshing – a modest man.

_What a welcome surprise. She could certainly get used to it._

Hana picked up the robot and ran her fingers across the surface, her experienced eyes picking out all the state of the art surveillance devices cleverly incorporated into the exoskeleton. It looked like a kid's toy with its colorful paint job but Hana knew that she was currently holding in her hands the future of home security.

It was pretty damn impressive.

"Damn – looks like I'm going be out of a job... this is quite the work of art, Kankuro." replied Hana finally returning the unit to an upright position on the stainless steel work table.

"I highly doubt it... I couldn't replicate your sixth sense when it comes to trouble into a machine, even if I tried." muttered Kankuro under his breath.

Hana turned swiftly and gave the large tattooed man a toothy grin.

"Why, sweetheart... I do believe you gave me a compliment... does that mean you're finally warming up to the concept of having a minder?" asked Hana with a sassy grin.

"No - I'm just not adverse to the idea of _you_ being my shadow, that's all." returned Kankuro with a scowl.

"That's _very_ good to know." murmured Hana with a decidedly feline purr as she reached up and captured his lips with her own.

Kankuro let out a small groan before he placed his hands onto her lean hips and lifting her up onto the work surface.

Hana was about to wrap her arms around his shoulders when she suddenly pulled away slightly and placed a fingertip on Kankuro's lips.

Kankuro's emerald eyes widened in shock as he too heard the noise.

A shrill ringing noise alerted the couple that someone was at the door.

"Are you expecting anyone or any packages?" hissed out Hana.

"No – I always get my personal purchases delivered to the front desk at the offices. Gaara was insistent on that." replied the large man gruffly.

"Does this room have access to the security cameras at your front entrance?" asked Hana with a frown as they heard the shrill sound of the door chimes once more.

Kankuro nodded abruptly before turning and walking over to a small bank of monitors.

Hana slid off the table and stalked swiftly across the stark room to watch the image on the small screen.

"Kankuro, do you recognize this man?" asked Hana in a hushed undertone as she expanded the image to show a close up of the man's face.

He nodded grimly and replied, "Yes, I do... that's Baki – head of Security for Suna Enterprises. If he's here, then that's not a good sign."

"You better tell him that you're here then before he becomes even more impatient." murmured Hana with a small smirk as she watched a small tick appear at the corner of the man's lips.

"Baki... what's up?" asked Kankuro as he pressed the button for the intercom.

A look of relief appeared on the stern looking man's face as he looked up at the security camera.

"Kankuro... are you decent?" countered the man carefully.

Hana gently pulled Kankuro's hand off the intercom button and translated, "He wants to know if I'm with you... tell him yes and you'll be there in a few minutes."

Kankuro pushed down on the intercom button and relayed the message back to the company's head security honcho, who nodded his understanding up at the camera.

"Do you trust him?" murmured Hana watching the relief ghost across the man's face once more before he masked his inner emotions.

"Hell, yes...Baki's family... he practically raised us when our bastard of a father passed away from a sudden heart attack." replied Kankuro gruffly.

"Okay... that's good enough for me... I want you to lock this room up while I go upstairs to pick up something. Wait until I get back to let him in... Got it?" responded Hana in a professional tone before giving him a quick kiss on the cheek as she moved over to the door.

"Got it." murmured Kankuro, watching the lithe woman slip out the door.

-------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay, let him in now, Kankuro." murmured a voice behind the broad chested man.

He nodded and gripped the door handle, pushing down on the little switch.

Kankuro had stepped to one side as the door opened only for a blur to race in front of him and drag the startled head of security into the house before slapping the door shut.

"Activate the security code, sweetheart while I say hello to our friend." murmured Hana coolly as she pushed the large man's face first into the hallway wall.

"I think I'm in love, Kankuro... it's been years since I've been manhandled like this." countered the stoic man dryly, giving the younger man a small wry smile.

"Get your own... that one's mine..." grouched Kankuro.

"Hmm... you dig assertive women, eh? Honey, have I got a friend of mine that is going to love you." replied Hana with a wolfish grin as her nimble fingers frisked the large man in front of her.

Kankuro locked the door and watched in shocked amazement as his hired shadow effectively fleeced the older man of his weapons, even the hidden knife in the boot and the ankle piece.

"Really? Is she as feisty as you?" asked Baki with a grin, not at all offended at how thoroughly the woman behind him divested him of his weapons.

"Oh... yeah... she's a kinky little minx too but I don't think that would frighten off a man like you." returned Hana as she finally stepped away from the man and gestured for him to go into the living room.

"Kankuro, why don't you put on the kettle and make us another pot of tea? I imagine Baki here would welcome some green tea... then we'll have a little chat." murmured Hana as Kankuro nodded and walked into the kitchen.

Hana sat on the arm of the sofa and watched in amusement as the older man gave her a measured look of contemplation.

"Relax, Baki... whatever you need to say to Kankuro can wait a few more minutes... oh, yeah...one more thing – keep your feet firmly on the ground or I will be forced to remove the boots - my way." murmured Hana with a wide grin.

"You figured it out, huh... that's pretty impressive... it cost me a small fortune to make them virtually undetectable." replied Baki, now more than a little impressed by the woman sitting across from him.

The wail of a siren could be heard a block away and the security honcho watched the woman's smile become broader.

Kankuro came back into the room with a full tea tray and carefully placed it on the low table.

"Thanks gorgeous... now – to what do we owe the pleasure of this visit, Baki?" asked Hana, her eyebrow raised as she leaned over to pick up a cup of tea from the tray.

"Gaara called me last night and told me about the new woman in Kankuro's life...so, naturally I had to come over and introduce myself." responded Baki smoothly, his eyes steadily looking over at the brunette.

"I see... so you are aware of the situation?" murmured Hana as she looked down into her tea cup and blew at the hot liquid.

"I am... and I came here to offer my assistance, since it's becoming obvious to me that he can't stay here." replied Baki as he leaned forward and picked up a cup.

"What about my work?! I just can't leave it here!" growled Kankuro.

"Relax, gorgeous... we're not going to leave it behind, so don't get your panties in a bunch." murmured Hana as she reached over and stroked a hand down the man's arm.

"Baki, we need to go over to the office and meet up with the rest of the family. Why don't you tag along?" asked Hana, pinning the older man with a look.

"Sure... I will be happy to come into the office with you two... so, any ideas as to what you want to do about Kankuro?" murmured Baki.

"Yeah... I do actually... can I use your phone?" countered Hana with a smirk.

Baki was very curious now as to what the woman was up to as he handed over his cell phone into her hands.

Hana flashed an evil smile to the two men as she flipped open the phone and punched in a number.

"Hey, you kinky bitch... yeah, yeah... work has been keeping me busy... I was hoping to ask you for a favor... could I use that place of yours for a while... yeah... I'll fill you in when I see you at the club. So, what time should we show up? Yeah... you heard right... I'm bringing company..." replied Hana to the voice on the phone giving Baki a saucy wink.

"Wellll... I found a man that likes his women feisty and kinky... yeah, yeah... you trollop... you came to my mind immediately." murmured Hana with a wicked laugh.

"Huh? I don't know... why don't you ask him yourself? He's right here." countered Hana before handing the phone over to the head of the security.

"Hello... Baki speaking...yes, I'm single...no, I'm straight...no, not desperate...just selective... yes, I'm clean... yes, I get tested regularly – it's a requirement for my line of work...I'm in security... really? ...you're a bouncer?" murmured Baki glancing over at the athletic brunette watching him intently with a wolfish smile firmly in place.

"Sorry... my hair color?" asked Baki with a frown, watching Hana place her hand in front of her mouth to muffle her laughter.

"Uh... I have red hair...yes; it's natural...what shade? ...it's a russet/deep burgundy color..." replied Baki looking over at the brunette woman who was now openly laughing at him.

"Yes...she's here...okay, I'll put her on..." murmured Baki with a small frown as he handed his phone back to the brunette.

"Yeah, it's me...so, what do you think?" asked Hana as she listened to her friend and continued to give the older man a knowing look.

"Sure, this phone takes photos... hang on... smile Baki...okay, sending it now..." murmured Hana as she pulled the phone away from her ear.

"Five, four, three, two..." muttered Hana.

"Holy shit!! This is the guy you want me to meet?! He's fucking gorgeous!! How the hell did he manage to stay single?! That's it – I'm taking the evening off!" yelled an excited voice out of the phone.

"So, I'll see you later then? Oh, yeah...Baki will definitely be with us... Hahaha... see you later, Anko." replied Hana as she hung up on her best friend and handed Baki back his phone.

"Don't worry, Baki... you'll be thanking me later for the introduction... trust me." countered Hana with an evil grin as she caught the look the older man was giving her.

"Kankuro, I want you to only pack what can fit into your bag that you take to work... pack essentials – extra cash, your wallet, travel documents, underwear...but no clothing. Also – start downloading all your research onto a CD-Rom and then erase the files on your computer because we're not planning to return back here this evening." said Hana grimly.

"What about my prototype?! I'm sure as hell not leaving it here for those bastards." growled Kankuro, starting to feel put out.

Hana let out a naughty chuckle and reached out to caress the man's high cheekbone, "Relax, gorgeous... we're not leaving your baby for the bad guys... but we are going to have to smuggle it out of the house since they may be still watching this place..."

"Kankuro, it's obvious that your...woman has a plan... just relax and let her do her job, okay?" replied Baki in a quiet undertone.

"Okay, I'll get the ball rolling ...but..._Emiko_, you better have a good plan to get my pride and joy out of here without a scratch... or so help me, heads are going to roll." huffed Kankuro before he pushed himself off the couch and stomped down the hallway.

Baki waited until the sound of Kankuro's footsteps disappeared before quietly murmuring, "He's in serious danger, isn't he – Emiko?"

"Yeah, he is Baki but the stupid fool still thinks he's untouchable. After last night's little fiasco – I'm not taking any chances." murmured Hana darkly.

"You mean that they tried again?!" growled Baki.

"Yeah... but lucky for us, they were too cheap to splash out on smarter tails... I think one of them is still cursing my name this morning." returned Hana with a knowing grin.

"You normally carry a piece for assignments?" murmured Baki waving towards the imperceptible bump under her arm.

Hana sighed with a shrug and replied, "No, I never needed it but they were packing heat last night so... I'm done playing nice."

"So – what type do you carry? I also missed it, its so compact." asked Baki with a wry smile.

"The smaller, the better, baby! It's a Heckler and Koch USP45 Tactical Compact... and yeah, it's a sweet little gun." replied Hana with a satisfied smirk, watching the security expert's eyes light up in interest.

They both looked up when they heard the approach of footsteps and Kankuro appeared in the archway.

"Okay, it won't take long for the remainder of my research files to rip onto my back up disks. I'm going to go upstairs to pack but I left the door to that room unlocked so you can take care of Lilly for Me." murmured Kankuro sourly before he stomped off once more.

"Lilly? He names them?!" asked Hana, the surprise apparent in her face.

Baki let out a rusty laugh and replied with a nod, "Yeah... his siblings often tease him about his odd little habit but to him, his robots are more than mere inventions...they're in a sense his children."

Hana nodded a thoughtful look now in the depths of her dark eyes.

_A man who lived for his job and viewed his projects as his children... _

_Yep, not doubt about it - Kankuro had more layers than an onion..._

_And she planned to explore every one of them._

-----------------------------------------------

The trio walked down the foyer of the main building of Suna Enterprises.

Kankuro glanced over at Baki, not surprised to see that smug and all knowing smile permanently attached to his face.

_Damn – she was a clever one… he'd give her that…_

He looked at the large bag slung carelessly over one slim shoulder and felt a wry smile tug at the corner of his lips.

_Not that anyone really noticed the bag when she was wearing that napkin sized skirt… which was the plan._

He thought he was in danger of swallowing his tongue when she had come down the stairs dressed in the skimpy outfit but she had merely smiled and replied that she was providing 'distraction'.

_Well… she was certainly that…_

Kankuro watched the face of the employees they passed on the way to his brother's office and wasn't surprised to see a lot of shocked looks.

It was obvious that they had not been expecting him to show his face around this place after the incident the other day.

_Hell, it would take a lot more than scare tactics to intimidate him. He was a Sabaku…and his family was made of stronger stuff._

The small group rounded the corner and could now pick up the sound of raised voices, coming from one of the executive offices.

"Who the hell died and made you god?!" yelled a distinctively female voice from the president's office.

"Shit…. Should we get in there and separate them?" muttered Kankuro under his breath with a groan.

"No, no… this should be good… I suggest we let them have at it for a while longer before we barge in." countered Hana with an evil little smile on her lips.

They could hear a male voice answer the woman with a short growl, "I made an executive decision…accept it."

"Who's that in there with Gaara?" asked Baki, now more than a little curious by the exchange.

"It still doesn't change the fact that you are a controlling S.O.B. with a Napoleon complex!" hissed out the female.

"Damn…. She's good." whistled Kankuro in appreciation.

"The hissing little she-cat with the viper's tongue is the President's new secretary, Hoshiko Watanabe." replied Hana, giving Baki a look of amusement.

They heard Gaara's voice but his response was too low for them to pick up his words.

"Bastard! You may have gotten your way in this matter but that's the only concession you'll be winning as far as _**I**_ am concerned." countered the woman in an outraged tone.

"She's pretty steamed at our esteemed leader." murmured Baki with a certain amount of surprise.

"And with good reason...Gaara would be her absolute last choice in terms of placement if it was left up to her." replied Hana with a knowing smile.

"Wha?! You mean to tell me that Little Red told her that it was him or nothing?" asked Baki, not bothering to hide his shock.

"Yeah…pretty much… and as you can hear, that kind of high handed behavior went over like a lead balloon with the young woman in question." responded Kankuro wryly.

"She must be something for your brother to pull one of those stunts though." countered Baki.

"Why don't you judge for yourself, Baki… let's interrupt them before either of them gets a second wind." murmured Hana, giving the large oak paneled doors a sharp rap before pushing the doors open.

Baki was slightly taken aback when he caught his first glimpse of the woman glaring ice daggers at his employer.

_She was certainly a striking little thing… and he could see why Gaara was attracted to her._

The abrupt look of relief that immediately washed into the dark haired young woman's face when she caught sight of the athletic looking brunette wasn't lost on Baki.

It all clicked into place for him in an instant.

The head of Security now knew that he was looking at the other operative from the protection agency.

"Baki... It's good to see you." murmured Gaara tightly as he finally noticed the new occupants of the office.

"You too, Gaara...putting the new employee through her paces, I see." replied Baki dryly, not bothering to hide his amusement from the obviously arguing pair.

"Hoshiko...did you bring what I asked for?" broke in Hana with a raised eyebrow.

"Uh...yes... Let me go get it for you from the other room." murmured Hinata in relief as she beat a hasty retreat from the office.

The men watched stunned as the petite woman returned to the room carrying an identical bag to the one Hana had currently looped over one shoulder.

"Are we waiting on anyone?" asked Hana in her no nonsense tone.

"No, Temari is at a publicity junket this morning, trying to downplay the drama of the bombing yesterday and generally assure the share holders that we will be releasing the prototype on time." replied Gaara dryly.

Hana nodded in understanding before she looked over at Baki and quietly said, "Baki, lock the door. We don't wish to be disturbed for this conversation."

"What the hell is going on?" growled Gaara, now on high alert.

"The prototype is done." replied Kankuro curtly.

"Your precious Lilly is finally completed?! Well? Where is it?" countered the red haired man, giving the small group in front of him a sharp look.

"Relax, Little Nero…we brought it with us. I caught someone watching the house this morning, so I felt it was imperative to remove all evidence of the project from the domicile, transfer the prototype to a safer location and get Kankuro into hiding - at least until after the launch." replied Hana wryly, shooting Hinata a knowing look.

"I see… I take it everything pertaining to the project is in the bag then?" murmured Gaara, feeling a shadow of grudging respect for the athletic brunette's dedication to her job.

"It is. I imagine you will direct Hoshiko as to where she can place the prototype until the launch. I would prefer it if we don't keep it on sight – not with a corporate mole on the loose." replied Hana as she slipped the bag off her shoulder, opened it to remove her wallet, phone and a small case before handing the bag carefully over to her friend and colleague.

"Emiko…is that what I think it is?" asked Hinata, her silver eyes darting over the small case in the tall woman's hand before glancing up at the concealed holster she knew would be strapped just under the woman's arm.

"Yes…I'm afraid so, Hoshiko. It can't be helped – we had company last night and they were done playing." responded Hana with a grimace.

"There was trouble last night? What happened, Kankuro?" growled out the red haired man.

"Someone tried to take me out while we were out at dinner last night but gorgeous here was having none of that." replied the large tattooed man with a smirk.

"Damn it, Kankuro… this isn't fucking funny anymore! When are you going to get it in that smug intellectual skull of yours that you're not fucking bullet proof." countered Gaara with a glare.

"Amen to that." Muttered Hana under her breath as she stuffed her retrieved items into the new hand bag.

"Are you done now?" asked Kankuro with a dark scowl.

"Yes – I have everything I need. You can go now if that's what you're asking, Kankuro." replied Gaara sourly as he watched his sibling turn and stalk towards the door, his leggy shadow and head of security close behind.

"Emiko….keep him safe." murmured the red head, not bothering to keep the concern out of his voice.

Hana paused, her hand on the lock when she heard the man utter those words and turned slightly to give him a wolfish grin over her shoulder.

"That's my plan, boss man." replied the brunette feeling her grin become wider as she saw the relief ghost across Gaara's face before retreating behind a mask.

"Gaara – I will call you later." called out Baki curtly as the trio left the office.

The red haired man stood watching the door in silence for a few minutes before finally murmuring in a curt voice, "Hoshiko, I will give you a few minutes to cancel my appointments for today and then I want you to be ready to leave with your handbag. Work can wait until tomorrow morning."

Hinata nodded mutely in understanding before walking over to the door with the large bag firmly tugged under one arm.

"Damn it, Kankuro… don't you dare die on me." growled out Gaara under his breath to the empty room.

----------------------------------------

A colorful tune rang out on Hana's cell phone as she prowled down the corporate hallways with the two striking men in tow.

She flipped it open with a flick of her wrist and cooed, "Yes, Hunny-Bunny…we're on our way now."

"Who's Hunny-Bunny?" asked Baki in amusement as he glanced over at the man walking briskly beside him in the leggy brunette's wake.

"Oh, just another poor bastard who can't seem to escape the evil clutches of my sweetie." replied Kankuro with a groan.

"I heard that." drifted back Hana's voice – the unholy delight over his comment apparent in her tone.

"She's quite the hand full, I take it?" murmured Baki in admiration of her spunk.

"Yeah – but she's **my** hand full to deal with…" countered Kankuro with a warning growl at the back of his throat.

"Don't worry, Baki… you will soon have your own hand full to deal with… I have a feeling that Anko is going to adore you!" replied Hana with a smirk as she waited at the entrance for the two men to catch up.

"Yeah – I see you, Snookie Bear….ahahahahaha…I would like to see you try that, Shinko…. Okay, talk to you shortly." murmured the brunette to the person on the phone before turning off the phone with a snap.

"Okay, Baki… you take the front and I will bring up the rear." said Hana quietly to the head of security as they paused in front of her.

"Got it." replied Baki as he pushed the door open and scanned the area for suspicious vehicles before strolling forward.

The broad chested man opened the door of the automobile and waited for Hana's signal.

"Okay - let's get moving, Hot stuff." whispered the brunette into Kankuro's ear as she gave him a slight nudge forward and followed closely behind.

"Did you miss me, Shinko?" chirped Hana cheerfully as the trio quickly got into the vehicle and closed the door.

"No… an hour hardly counts as long enough time to effectively forget your harpy tones. I don't see why you can't take this a little more seriously, Emiko." murmured Shino without emotion.

"Amen to that." muttered Kankuro under his breath.

"Oh pooh... It's a lot more fun rattling your cage, Shinko." replied Hana with an evil grin on her lips to the image in the rear vision mirror before Shino raised his middle finger in salute.

"Yowch! Are you sure these two are friends?" muttered Baki to the tattooed man sitting next to him with a smirk on his lips.

"Yeah, positive… you haven't seen anything yet, Baki… these two are just getting warmed up." countered Kankuro easily.

"Aww… baby. You know you enjoy the attention…" cooed Hana with a broad smile as she listened to Shino snort in response.

"Shut it, Emiko… just tell me where the hell I need to take you." returned Shino as he pulled the town car out into the late morning traffic.

"We're going to the Viper's Nest to see Anko." replied Hana with an evil grin.

"Oh hell, no… Emiko… it's too fucking early in the day to deal with that crazy bitch…we're not that desperate for help." cursed Shino in disgust.

"Awww, Shinko… she did say she was sorry about _that_." retorted Hana with a knowing smile.

"Fuck you, Emiko! She wasn't the one who had to deal with the fallout." growled out Shino in a low voice as he entered the expressway leading down into the downtown area.

"Your friend is a bouncer at the Viper's Nest?" asked Kankuro, now more than a little curious about the mysterious Anko.

"Yep… you heard of it, have you?" murmured Hana softly while she continued to watch Shino silently fume about the prospect to having to talk to the feisty bouncer.

"Yeah… been to a couple of shows there… it has the reputation of being one of the nastiest Punk Bars in town but the security on the door is first class, which is why all the top punk acts love playing there."

"Wait a minute… your friend wouldn't happen to be Anko _Man-eater_ Mitarashi?" cut in Baki, not bothering to hide the shock from his tone.

"Yep – that's her… you having second thoughts about meeting her now?" replied Hana with a knowing glance, only to have Kankuro burst out laughing.

"Hardly…She's Baki's fantasy woman…" murmured the tattooed man with a small grin after he finally stopped laughing from the irony of the situation.

"Really? Do tell, Baki…" drawled Hana teasingly as Shino watched the group with undisguised curiosity via the rear vision mirror.

"I saw her throw a man four times her size 10 feet through the air the night I went to the Viper's Nest to see a show with Kankuro and I think I fell in love with her in that moment….unfortunately, I didn't talk to her... I only had enough time to ask one of the guys working the door that night for her name before we had to leave…it's been two years since I last saw her." responded Baki with a small smile as he folded his arms.

"I'll be damned……Do you suppose he could be the mystery red head she's been searching for all this time?" asked Shino, now mildly amused by this unexpected turn of events.

"My sentiments exactly, Shinko… so, you want to stick around long enough to see the look on Anko's face or you eager to get back to the office?" asked the brunette with an impish grin.

Hana watched in amusement as Shino quickly shook his head and replied, "Hell no… I want to see the look on her face when she meets Baki."

----------------------------------------------------------

The sleek black town car pulled up in front of the Viper's Nest where a petite brunette wearing tightly laced black leather pants, matching lace up top and heavily buckled black leather boots stood waiting impatiently for them.

"Anko…" murmured Shino in greeting as he pulled up in front of her.

The brunette gave the stoic man a nod before the passenger door closest to the curb opened.

Hana stepped out and waited impassively as Kankuro emerged out of the dark interior of the vehicle.

"Damn… that's what I call an assignment." drawled Anko in admiration as Kankuro felt his face go a dull brick red.

"I'm glad you approve... but you'll have to find your own body to watch…I'm planning to keep this one close at hand for a while..." replied Hana with a certain amount of satisfaction.

"Why am I not surprised to hear that? I take it that this is a short visit then?" murmured Anko with a knowing smirk before tossing a set of keys to her friend.

"Yeah, sorry Anko… things are getting a little too dicey to stay in one place longer than necessary…Thanks…is the combination still the same?" asked Hana as she opened her bag and dropped the keys in.

"Shit… almost forgot… here… this is the new combination." grumbled the bouncer as she pushed a hand down into a pocket of her pants and fished out a piece of paper.

"Thanks…I owe you one, Anko." said Hana gratefully as she reached out and plucked the paper out of her friend's hand.

"If you can get me the red head's digits…we'll call it an even trade." responded Anko brazenly.

"I think that can be arranged but I would prefer to give you more than a number though." countered a husky voice behind just behind the small brunette.

Shino and Hana held back the snickers as they watched the look of shock dawn on the normally unflappable Anko.

"Holy shit…It's really you!" exclaimed the woman paling as she recognized the powerfully built man standing at her side.

"You still look amazing…so, I have been meaning to ask you ever since I saw you two years ago… how the hell do you get into those pants?" asked Baki, not bothering to hide his admiration of Anko's toned body encased in the tightly laced ensemble.

Hana felt a small smile tug at the corner of her lips when he heard Shino give a softly uttered groan.

_Poor guy… it was obvious he still had flashbacks about that night…_

The smaller woman laughed in delight and replied in a sassy tone, "I've had plenty of practice…why do you ask? Are you interested in getting into my pants?"

"Eventually… but I would like to take you out for dinner when you have a free night." returned Baki easily.

"Hell, baby… you don't need to wine and dine me…I'm already impressed." said Anko, giving the man a sweeping side glance with her brown eyes.

"You may be ready to get to the main course but I prefer to work my way up." responded Baki with a grin.

"Hana…I'm officially in lust." drawled Anko in delight, not at all offended at being told that she would need to wait to get a taste of Baki.

"You're only in lust? …looks like I will need to change that." replied Baki in a smoky voice.

Hana shook her head as the pair's bantering before she cleared her throat and murmured, "Anko…trade numbers with Baki quickly because we need to get going…"

"No problem, uh…" broke off Anko giving her friend a puzzled look.

"Emiko." intoned Shino helpfully, a smile peaking out from his high collar at the woman's frown.

Anko nodded in understanding she slid her hand back into her pocket, drew out a business card with the nightclub's logo on it and handed it over to a visibly delighted Baki.

"Well, Baki… I managed to get the night off, so if you want to meet up tonight…" trailed off Anko hopefully.

"Anko, I'm free tonight too… how about I call you this evening once I have finished up here and we can figure out where you want to go eat." murmured Baki with a smile.

"I can't wait… well, have fun kids… until later, Baki." replied Anko as she watched the trio get back into the vehicle with a soft slap of the doors.

Shino turned on the ignition and with a small nod in Anko's direction, drove off down the road.

"Damn it… I was hoping that he wasn't still mad at me about that ….but I guess not." muttered Anko under her breath before she turned around and walked back to the club's entrance.

----------------------------------------------------------

Gaara nodded slightly in acknowledgment at the employees and upper management that he encountered in the corridors of the corporate office.

The couple had just reached the lobby when a voice called out, "Mister Sabaku… one moment of your time …if I may."

"Fuck it… I don't have time for this shit… and certainly not with this asshole." growled Gaara under his breath as he darted a look at the dark haired woman.

Hinata nodded in understanding before they turned as one and waited for the tall and elegant executive to catch up with them.

"Uchiha… what seems to be the problem?" asked Gaara in a cordial tone of voice.

"I just returned from the press conference that Temari held and it seems that a couple of the major shareholders are not convinced that the new prototype will be launched as promised." replied the man in the expensive business suit and pony tail.

Gaara frowned at the unwelcome news before finally asking with a growl, "Let me guess… it's that Orochimaru prick from Hebi Corp., correct?"

"Yes…His comments this time have panicked a couple of the stockholders and they're requesting a meeting with you to get a reassurance that the launch will happen without a hitch." replied Itachi with a curt nod.

"I see. You can inform them that I will be able to schedule a time to see them at 11 am tomorrow morning, if that is agreeable to all parties involved?" responded the president, the kanji tattoo raised high on his temple in enquiry.

"It is, Mister Sabaku… I will inform them of the appointment when I go back to the board room." said the tall executive with a slight bow.

"How is Temari handling the backlash, Itachi?" asked Gaara in an undertone, so only Hinata and Itachi could hear him.

Itachi replied equally quietly, "It was ugly, Gaara. It seemed that both the press and the major shareholders were leaked details about the threats against your brother and this has caused her major headaches this morning."

"Itachi… I want you to stay with Temari today… I have a feeling that the day is only going to be more of a trial than it already is." responded Gaara in the same low tone as he watched the man before him with hooded eyes.

"I understand. I assume that you can be reached in the usual manner?" asked the dark haired man in a louder voice, his black eyes showing concern before the emotion was quickly masked.

Gaara gave a quick nod and replied grimly, "Yes, we plan to be out of the office for the rest of the day doing our own damage control."

"Don't worry about Temari…I will keep an eye on her." Murmured Itachi quietly before responding in a louder voice, "I will get those reports on your desk by end of work today, Mister Sabaku."

Gaara gave the other man an assessing look before loudly countering with a snarl, "See that you do, Uchiha…"

The couple watched at the tall executive turned on his heel and stalked off down the corridor, appearing to be furious to the curious on-lookers lurking along the wall.

"I don't pay you all to gawk!" barked out Gaara in a tone that spurred the employees lingering in the area to dash off to their offices.

"Let's go, Hoshiko… I promise I will answer your questions when we're in a safe place to talk." Said Gaara in a quiet undertone as he stepped forward and opened the door for the small woman.

"Mister Sabaku, we need to hurry or we're going to be late for our lunch appointment." said Hinata in a soft, hesitant voice that drifted over to the individual who continued from his hiding spot, to watch the red head in great interest.

"Yeah…Gaara Sabaku is just leaving for a business meeting off the premises….he's leaving with his new secretary…yeah, she's a mousy little thing…looks like she would jump in fright at the sight of her own shadow…" murmured a smirking voice in the shadows to the voice in his receiver.

The man listened intently as his employer gave him instructions before quietly replying, "Kankuro Sabaku showed up this morning with Baki and that new woman of his…yeah – the striking brunette with the facial tattoos and legs to die for…how do I know? She was wearing a skirt that was barely legal… you bet I was looking! I also heard she did a number on Haru's hand last night… the stupid bastard is lucky he didn't remove the star… he could have bled to death….yes – no question about it…the woman is definitely a professional."

The man nodded absently as he listened to his orders before responding, "Okay…let me check out the offices to see what I can find…If Suna Enterprises have hired someone to protect boy genius… then it's going to be difficult to find the information we seek."

He glanced around the foyer as he listened in silence before finally replying, "The brunette? She's definitely got some martial arts background…but no, I don't think she's the person we're looking for… she's not exactly the type that blends into the woodwork like a hired shadow is supposed to."

The man frowned as he listened to the voice and abruptly barked, "No! I don't want anyone entering the house until we can determine how long we have to search the premises… yes, I will have the information shortly… just tell those idiots to sit tight and wait for my call."

The man on the other end of the phone growled back a reply to which the man coolly responded, "I did advise against you hiring common street thugs….yeah, well …now you will listen to me."

The man's eye narrowed as he saw a familiar figure enter the hallway.

"Look…I need to get going here….yeah… its show time… yes – leave it to me." murmured the man soothingly as he hung up the phone, slipped it into his pocket and approached the woman.

"Miss Sabaku… are you okay?" asked the man with mock concern.

"I'm fine, Jiro… it's been a rough morning, that's all. I am heading out to lunch with Mister Uchiha and a couple of the board you call the clients I had appointments with for this afternoon and reschedule a time to meet with them during the week?" asked the blonde woman, her blue eyes reflecting the stress of the morning board meeting.

"Uh…Miss Sabaku… I heard about your brother…it must have been rather terrifying …is he okay?" murmured the man softly.

"Oh, Jiro…I thought for sure that he was a goner yesterday when his lab went up…but he managed to escape with a few scratches and a foul temper." said Temari with a relieved tone in her voice.

"He is indeed a lucky man… I guess he plans to take a couple of days to recover from the bombing though?" countered Jiro with a slight nod of his head.

Temari gave the man a wry grin and shook her head as she replied, "Hell…no….not Kankuro…but he's not going to be working today…not if he doesn't wish to feel the rough end of the President's tongue. He agreed to get checked out by the family physician…so I am not expecting to see him for the rest of the day."

"Well, it's a relief to hear that your brother has agreed to get a clean bill of health before returning back to work…. I should let you go now, Miss Sabaku…. I have taken up enough of your time with my questions and I can see Mister Uchiha waiting for you with the two board members over by the front doors." Dismissed Jiro smoothly, gesturing over at the figures standing near the entrance with a tilt of his head.

"Oh shit! I should go and stroke some egos, I guess… Jiro….thank you." Murmured Temari with a grateful smile.

"No…thank you, Miss Sabaku." murmured Jiro privately, watching as the woman turned and walked purposely over to the trio waiting patiently for her to join them.

He studied the entrance in silence as he saw them disappear out the door before he pulled out his cell phone and dialed a familiar number.

"Yeah… it's me. I got confirmation that the bastard is going to be out of the house for at least another two to three hours… you know what to do….yes, call me back once you're done." said the man before closing his phone with a snap.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Notes: **

The pair are on the move and trying to be one step of the bad guys in this chapter.

This story is intended for a mature audience. Violence, bad language, the mention of a near sexual assault and sexy banter are featured in this installment.

Baki doesn't have a surname in the Narutoverse, so for the purposes of my plot development and storyline cohesiveness, I have taken the liberty of giving him one.

The song lyrics listed in the story are "Strict Machine" by the group, Goldfrapp.

Any sentence in italics denotes the private thoughts of a character.

Small reminder: Everyone working undercover on the case have aliases.

This chapter inspired by the song, "Whatever" by Godsmack.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto or any characters from the series. I do however own the original characters mentioned. I do not make a profit from my fiction. I just do this for mine and your amusement. Enjoy, beautiful people, enjoy.

**Chapter Six – Purgatory**

"Okay, Emiko… where do we need to go?" asked Shino as the non descript black town car moved smoothly through the early afternoon traffic.

"Drop us off at Lucky Lulu's place… as much as I loathe to admit it - we need to change clothes and disguise these tattoos." Murmured the brunette.

"Do you want me to come with you?" asked Baki as he watched the driver give the woman a short nod before switching lanes.

Hana turned and softly replied, "No… it's best that the less folks that know where we're hiding the better off we will be…I don't want you taking any unnecessary risks."

"Okay…I understand….but Emiko, if you do need help… here's my private cell number…" said Baki as he leaned across and handed Hana a white card with a picture of a rabbit popping out of a hat.

"Did you give Anko one of these?" asked Hana with a smirk as she flipped the mock business card up in the path of the rear view mirror with a flick of her fingers.

"No – I usually only use these when it's necessary." Replied Baki with a small smile.

"Nice… not as good as mine though." Murmured Shino as he glanced at the card before turning down a side street.

"Shinko's specialty is surveillance and infiltration. If there is a way to make it or disguise vital information, Shinko can do it…. Business Cards are a great way of passing on info that you don't want others to find." Remarked Hana for Kankuro's benefit as she opened her handbag and retrieved her wallet, sliding the card inside.

"Yeah… this young police officer I met a few years ago showed me the trick…" said Baki as he leaned back into his seat once more.

"Yes – Naruto was always full of tricks and surprises…that's for sure." Countered Hana with a wry smile.

"You knew Officer Uzumaki?" asked Baki in surprise.

"Yes – we both did…he was a dear friend of ours." Responded Hana sadly before turning her head to look out the window.

"Emiko…we're here…good luck, you two." Murmured Shino as he slowed the car to a stop in front of the brightly colored club with a cheerful yellow awning.

"Baki – have fun at dinner with Anko… don't let her try to push you around." Said Hana with a grin.

"Do you need some condoms?" murmured Kankuro with a sly smile.

The head of security looked at the younger man in shock before he gave him a quick shove.

"Get out of here, brat! I will see you at the launch." Grouched Baki affectionately.

"We'll be there." Countered Hana with a grin before ushering Kankuro close and closing the door.

Baki watched the pair disappear into the building, still feeling uneasy at the thought of losing someone he viewed more as a son.

"Don't worry, Baki…Hana will look after him." murmured the driver in a confidential tone as he picked up on the other man's anxious mood.

"Wait, that was Hana as in Hana Inuzuka?" asked Baki in shock, instantly recognizing the name.

"Yes…the dark blossom herself but I would appreciate it if you don't call her by her real name…for obvious reasons. It's Emiko Tanaka." Countered Shino smoothly, now a little relieved as he watched the man become a little more calmer.

Baki looked up and gave the driver a nod of understanding as he felt the car move away from the curb.

"So, kids parties… do you ever have to validate your cover?" asked Shino with a smile.

"Yeah, every so often I come across someone who wants a demonstration of my skills – I know a few simple tricks… so it's easy to bluff my way out of trouble if needed… why? What do you put on yours?" asked Baki now curious.

"I prefer pest extermination, toxicology or sanitation companies myself… people give you a wide berth if they think that they are going to catch something nasty from you… but Naruto was the king of grossing folks out… you know what he used to have on his phony cards?" murmured Shino warming up to his companion.

"No…what?" asked Baki, now smiling widely.

"Proctology Doctor." Replied Shino smoothly.

Baki laughed all the way back to the office.

-5-5-5-

"Sweetie! Let me guess…Yashira, Fuyumi, Sachi, Emiko or Adara?" drifted out a husky voice in amusement.

"It's Emiko this time…How are you, Lulu?" asked Hana as the slender drag queen walked over to the young couple.

"Oh my… the perks of your job just keep getting better and better." Murmured Lulu as she gazed at tattooed man in unabashed admiration.

"Yeah – I'm certainly not complaining… he's eye candy, that's for sure." Chuckled Hana knowingly as Kankuro went red in embarrassment.

"Ohhhh… he's shy…. Emiko – he's delicious!" cooed Lulu as she swept her arm towards the back of the club.

"Why are we here?" asked Kankuro through his teeth.

"We need to hide our tattoos and change our appearance…right now, we're sitting ducks for those bastards…so we need to blend in." replied Hana with a wide grin.

"This way, Emiko darling." Directed the blonde drag queen.

"Okay, Kankuro…follow us." Murmured the body guard as she trailed behind the drag queen down a small hallway near the stage.

"It's okay, gorgeous…Lulu doesn't bite." Drifted out Hana's voice.

Kankuro grunted under his breath as he hastened after the pair and followed them into the brightly lit dressing room.

"Although…I must admit that I wouldn't mind nibbling on him." Murmured Lulu with a sassy half smile as Hana sat down in front of the mirror.

"Nah ah…I got dibs on him first." Countered the brunette with a knowing smirk.

"You would rub it in." muttered the drag queen with a sniff as she tugged the rubber band loose, reaching for a hair brush and a pair of scissors.

"Don't cut her hair." Said Kankuro bluntly, with a dull flush to his cheekbones.

"Mmm hmmm….Emiko…he's a handful. Are you sure you don't want to share him?" countered Lulu with a raised eyebrow, putting down the pair of scissors and picking up the hair tie.

"Sorry, Lulu…he's all mine. If big and hunky wants it long…then let's go with a wig instead." Replied Hana with a sassy smile.

"Ooh…I know the perfect ones. Let me go get them." Murmured Lulu as she finished tying up the brunette's hair.

"Lulu, can you grab contacts for me and gorgeous?" husked Hana, touching the drag queen's hand briefly before the young woman gave a brisk nod and walked off.

"So, how did you meet Lulu?" asked Kankuro as he watched Hana smoothly pull her hair back into a long pony tail before pinning it securely to the top of her head.

"I was in the wrong place at the wrong time, honey. Beautiful here managed to save my skinny little ass before it got screwed to hell and back." drifted out a voice from behind them.

"I didn't do anything. I just scared them off. I don't think that qualifies as saving your skinny ass, Lulu." Grouched Hana in embarrassment as she finished pinning her pony tail down and reached for a wig cap.

The drag queen walked back into the dressing room, carrying two medium length wigs.

"You're full of shit as always. I had been screaming my head off and not one of those miserable sods walking past on the main street stopped to help. They had my skirt hiked up, my panties torn off and my naughty bits waving in the breeze before all hell broke loose." Countered Lulu with a sideways glance at Hana suddenly engrossed in the make-up case on the table.

"What happened next?" asked Kankuro, not bothering to hide his curiosity.

"They dropped me like a stone and started yelling that someone was trying to kill them before they ran off into the alley. Next thing I knew – I was slung over her shoulder like a cheap fur. She took me back to her place, patched me up and helped me turn my life around. I have been singing her praises ever since." Returned Lulu with a smirk, jerking her head in the brunette's direction as she put the wigs onto the table.

"You talk too much, Lulu." Grumbled Hana as she grabbed the stick of concealer.

"And you never change, Emiko….thank kami." Returned Lulu with a chortle.

"How is the new book keeper working out?" asked Hana, deliberately changing the subject as she applied the concealer onto her tattoos.

"Oh kami! That kid's a god send! The accounts have never been in better shape thanks to him!" exclaimed Lulu as she tugged Kankuro over to a vacant chair.

"I'm relieved to hear that they are now someone else's headache to deal with." Murmured Hana with a grimace.

Lulu let out a chuckle and replied, "Yeah, I noticed that you would rather eat nails than do the books."

"All part of running a business…unfortunately." Muttered the brunette as she reached for the black bob and a pair of contacts.

"Wait. You own this place?" countered Kankuro, his emerald eyes showing his amused audience the shock he was clearly feeling at the discovery.

"Yep. I will need to retire from the bodyguard business sooner or later. I can't keep protecting everyone else's asses forever…no matter how handsome they are." Returned Hana with a saucy smile, watching in delight as the man blushed.

"She's the brains behind the place. I just provide the visual décor as it were." Added Lulu with a broad smile as she watched the understanding dawn in those beautiful eyes.

"Lulu, do we have any street clothes that would fit big guy here?" murmured Hana as she gazed at her tattooless cheeks in the makeup mirror with satisfaction.

The statuesque drag queen gave the large man a careful appraisal before giving a brisk nod and replying, "Ru-ru's clothes should fit him. Let me go call her before she leaves her apartment."

"Ru-ru is a regular sweetheart. By night, she's the bitch goddess of the main stage and by day, he's a grade school teacher specializing in working with special needs kids." Said Hana with a wry smile as she pulled out the chair beside her and gestured for Kankuro to sit down.

"That's quite the transition. How did he end up working here?" countered the large man, anticipating her response.

"I scouted him. He was hanging his laundry out on the roof of the apartment building I live in, singing a Barbra Streisand tune decked out in a green plaid dressing gown and a pair of mule slippers topped with pink marabou feathers when I walked up the fire escape and introduced myself." Murmured Hana with a smirk, silently admiring the way Kankuro's pants tightened across his backside as he bent slightly at the waist to pull out the chair further.

"Pervert. I saw that." Muttered the man, another spot of red high on his cheekbones.

"There's no crime in looking, cupcake." Countered Hana with a sassy smile.

"What's the plan after we're done disguising our appearance?" asked Kankuro as he took the concealer and started smearing it over his face.

"We're going to sit tight here for a while, have a meal, be social and then slip out the back door with the early evening shift." Replied Hana with a grin as she picked up a sponge and began to blend in the concealer on Kankuro's face.

"Okay, Ruru is bringing another set of clothes as well as picking up a bottle of hair dye for your hunk of man cake." Said Lulu as she walked back into the dressing room.

"Wait. We're dying my hair?" returned Kankuro in grim, forboding voice, reaching up to touch his dark russett hair.

"Sorry, baby. I love your gorgeous locks too but we need to throw these guys off their game. They will eventually figure out that you never went to the hospital and will start searching around town for you. No one is going to pay any attention to a hooker leaving a drag bar with a john." replied Hana with smug satisfaction.

"Excellent. Thanks, Lulu. Did she mention how her new routine was going?" continued Hana, looking to smile at Lulu before grabbing the face powder and setting the concealer on Kankuro's face.

"It's not. The music hasn't arrived yet and she's beside herself." Replied Lulu with a look of chagrin.

"Can't she use an old routine?" countered Kankuro with a frown.

"She wanted to take a break from her broadway standards and try something new tonight. I guess it can't be helped." Said Hana, more than a little disappointed.

"Ru-ru is the only drag queen that sings her own stuff at the club. It's a big draw card for an establishment like this. The regulars are going to be disappointed but again, as the boss lady says…it can't be helped." Replied Lulu with a smile.

"Is she still planning to bring in the new outfits?" countered Hana with barely concealed excitement.

"Oh honey…what a silly question. Of course Ru-ru is going to bring in the new outfits to show you…duh." Returned Lulu with a smirk.

"Lulu, do you have a computer with internet access and a credit card that I can borrow? I will also need a copy of Ru-ru's current play list. I think I have a solution that will work out." Murmured Kankuro with a calculating look in his eye.

"Just charge it on the corporate account, Lulu. I have a feeling that whatever he comes up with is going to worth the price of admission. The last thing we want to deal with is an unhappy drag queen."

-5-5-5-5-

The man watched in interest as the town car pulled up to the curb and out stepped the head of Security for Suna Enterprises.

Thin lips quirked in a tiny smirk before he strolled through the building doors and leisurely made his way over to the sleek black sedan where Baki Nakano stood chatting amicably to the driver.

"Baki….a moment of your time, if I may." Murmured the man.

"A friend of yours?" asked Shino in an undertone as the man walked towards them.

"He works for Temari…personal assistant." Returned Baki quickly before he straightened up and stretched out a hand to greet the newcomer.

"Yamashita. How are you…everything well?" asked Baki cordially as he shook the man's hand.

"I can't complain. I understand you have your hands full with this bombing business though. Do you have any leads yet?" murmured the man.

"No, nothing yet. The police are still looking into it." Replied Baki easily.

"A pity. It would be nice to get this matter resolved before the launch." Said the man with a slide ways glance at the man in the dark shades.

The meaning of the look wasn't lost on Baki or Shino.

The man was clearly uncomfortable discussing this in front of a man he felt was nothing more than hired help.

"Yes, I agree but the police are working as expediently as they can to resolve this matter. Kankuro understands this and has offered to give them his full cooperation." Replied Baki smoothly, ignoring the not so subtle hint to ask Shinko to leave.

"How is Kankuro? I understand he had to go to the hospital so they could run tests." Countered the man, now scowling openly at the tall man in the dark shades.

Shino glanced imperceptively over at Baki, in time to see him give a casual shrug of his shoulders.

"Yes, I just talked to him. He's not happy about having to stay at the hospital for a few hours but it can't be helped." Murmured Baki, with a slight tilt of his lips.

"I imagine he's eager to get back to work, especially with the deadline approaching." Replied the man with a bright smile.

Shino's eyes narrowed thoughtfully behind his dark designer sunglasses as he studied the man's face more closely, unsurprised to see the almost hostile look in the man's light colored eyes.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you but I need to leave to pick up my next client. Do you wish me to come back later to pick you up after your appointment, Mister Nakano?" asked Shino pointedly, his shaded eyes looking directly at the man talking to Baki.

Baki turned to find a card being held out with the image of a luxury car and the name of the service in elegant black script.

"Thank you….Mister Ogawa. I will give you a call when I am done." Replied Baki smoothly, reading the name on the card before retrieving it and pulling out his wallet from his back pocket.

"I know the company is picking up the tab but this is for you." Murmured Baki as he pulled a twenty dollar bill out and gave it to the chauffeur.

"Thank you, sir. You are most generous." Returned Shinko with a small bow of his head.

"Yes…thank you, Mister Ogawa. I'm sure we have taken up enough of your time." Said Jiro with a conciliatory smile, watching as the man opened the driver's door of the town car and slid inside the dark interior, gently closing the door behind him.

Baki's dark eyes studied the figure of Temari's assistant.

The man was eager to get rid of Shinko to the point of rudeness.

Baki waited until the town car reached the end of the driveway before replying in a low aggressive growl, "There was no need for you to be rude to the man, Yamashita."

"This is not social hour at the local pub. You shouldn't be so familiar with the help." Countered the assistant archly.

"You're an elitist snob, Yamashita. You would disown your own ass if the stink started to offend you." Replied Baki with a sneer.

"Tsk, Tsk…Nakano…you're showing your blue collar roots again." Tutted Yamashita with a snide smile.

"Screw you. Say what's on your mind then let me go in and do some damage control of my own." Hissed back Baki.

"This latest invention of Kankuro's better be worth the inconvenience. I would hate to see this company sink faster than a led zeppelin."

"I thought you would be more optimistic…considering you have a vested interest in this company's future as well." Returned Baki with a bite in his tone.

"I do but the investors do not share our faith in the boy genius's ability to remain one step ahead of the grave." Countered the man smoothly.

"Well, we will just need to try harder in convincing them otherwise." Responded Baki darkly, brushing past the openly gloating man and towards the front doors of the office building.

"Yes, good luck on that, Mister Nakano." Muttered Jiro, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his cell phone.

"Yes…it's me. Have you found anything yet?...well, keep looking…we have more than enough time to search." Said the man with a knowing smile before disconnecting the call with a satisfied snap.

-5-5-5-5-5-

Kiba glanced up at the sound of the door opening and slamming shut after Shino.

The boss of Inuzuka Security watched in morbid curiosity as his friend stalked over to his desk, tossed his car keys onto the surface before sitting down and turned his computer on.

"What crawled up your ass and died?" asked Kiba, his interest now piqued over Shino's rare fit of anger.

"Shut your hole, Kiba. I'm not in the mood." Bit out Shino as he opened up a document and began to type.

"I take it there were problems relocating Hana and the client?" asked Kiba casually, an eyebrow quirked at the muttered cursing.

"No…that went according to plan. I wasn't counting on the corporate asswipe that was laying in wait for us over at Suna Enterprises." Replied Shino, his fingers effortlessly flying over the keyboard.

A feral grin came readily to Kiba's lips.

"Let me guess…he pulled that… 'I'm better than you' shit…right?" returned Kiba with a knowing smirk.

The sound of air being quickly expelled was all the answer the larger man needed.

_He loved shit like this. These narrow minded assholes had no clue._

"I take it you got his name?" countered Kiba, not bothering to hide his excitement.

"Last name but the rest is easy enough to get." Returned Shino, his hands continuing to type.

"Are you going to give the poor bastard forewarning that you're going to screw over his life completely?" murmured Kiba with a salacious smile, leaning casually on the desk as he watched the programs process the new information.

"No – that would defeat the point." Replied the taller man with a tiny hint of a smile as the program got a hit and popped up a file.

Kiba let out a low whistle and finally muttered, "That's quite the pedigree…Ivy league schools, country club membership – the whole shebang."

Much to Kiba's amusement, Shino let out a low scoffing sound and countered, "Mine's better."

"You're usually impervious to the bullshit…so what was it about this guy that has pissed you off?" asked Kiba, folding his arms across his chest, his eyes on the Shino as he continued to tap away on the PC.

Shino was an expert in blending into the background but it was rare for him to get this worked up over something he usually termed as trivial.

Long elegant fingers paused mid stroke on the keyboard before Kiba heard a low breath being expelled.

"I just have a gut feeling. There's something about this man that I don't trust as far as I can throw him. I don't have any proof yet but I just know he is not what he appears to be." Replied Shino plainly after a few moments of contemplation, his fingers returning to their rapid rhythm.

Kiba frowned thoughtfully at his friend and employee's comment.

_Shino's gut feelings were rarely wrong_.

Kiba had ignored it once and a dear friend ended up getting killed.

He had vowed that he would never make that mistake again.

"If he's our rat…we are not going to flush him out this way. Someone this smart isn't going to come out of his hole for anything but top shelf cheese. It's also going to be difficult to prove he's involved in all of this without some tangible evidence." Murmured Kiba finally.

Shino stopped typing and tilted his head to give his employer his full attention.

"What do you suggest?" countered Shino with a slight uplift of his lips.

Kiba pulled out his cellphone and pushed a number.

"Hatake, it's Inuzuka. I got a job for you. Can you head over to Kankuro Sabaku's place and check it out? Call me if you come across anything suspicious…yeah, thanks."

"So, what do you wish to do now?" asked Shino with a speculative look as Kiba ended the call and snapped his phone shut.

"We wait for Kakashi to call back and then start beating the proverbial grass to see what runs out." Returned Kiba with a feral grin.

-4-4-4-4-4-

The two dancers strutted onto the stage, entering from opposite ends of the stage as a lone spot beamed down upon a statuesque redhead slinking down a low set of stairs in the center of the stage.

The two young men rolled and swished their hips to the driving beat of the song, stopping to extend an arm each to the woman as her stiletto heel clad feet reached the floor.

There were wolf whistles and cat calls as she sashayed to the front of the stage with her escort and began to sing, her sultry voice casting a spell over the audience.

_I get high on a buzz  
Then a rush when I'm plugged in you  
I connect  
When I'm flush  
You get love when told what to do_

"Maybe I should ask you to help us out more often…" murmured Hana with a smirk as she sipped her cranberry and dry gingerale as the dancers on stage let go of the woman's arm and gyrated suggestively to the beat.

"He's a freaking genius…that's what he is. George on the door just told me that the place is almost at capacity. I also have never seen Ru-ru look so raunchy. It's a dream come true." Countered Lulu in an animated voice as she sat down at the table.

"It doesn't take a genius to compile a compatible list of songs based around Ru-ru's current song repertoire. Ru-ru is the one who is impressive. She had to learn three new songs in a short amount of time." Replied Kankuro gruffly as he watched the red head playfully swat one of the dancers on the backside.

_Wonderful electric  
Wonderful electric  
Wonderful electric  
Cover me in you_

I'm in love, I'm in love  
I'm in love with a strict machine

I'm in love, I'm in love  
I'm in love with a strict machine

"Yeah, she certainly is…" returned Hana with a satisfied smile as Ru-ru worked the crowd into a frenzy.

"You were right about those two bar backs though. They can dance to anything and make it look like a felony." Muttered Kankuro, feeling the blush heat up his cheeks.

"Yeah, Pyotr and Sven are awesome guys. I also knew that they would jump at the chance to dance on the main stage with Ru-ru. They worship the ground she walks on. We used to allow them to dance on the bar but it became a crowd control problem. We got fed up with hauling out patrons who got a little too friendly." Returned Hana with a chuckle.

"I can imagine how that can be a pain in the you-know-where after a while." Replied Kankuro with a low husky chuckle.

"And then some…I was tempted to start gelding the overzealous bastards but thankfully madame decided to put a stop to the bar top show." Concurred Lulu with a heartfelt sigh.

_When you send me a pulse  
Feel a wave of new love  
Through me  
I'm dressed in white noise  
You know just what I want  
So please_

_Wonderful electric  
Wonderful electric  
Wonderful electric  
Cover me in you_

I'm in love, I'm in love  
I'm in love with a strict machine

I'm in love, I'm in love  
I'm in love with a strict machine ...

Kankuro felt his face get annoyingly warm once more as the woman ghosted a hand down the front of her body with one hand before she raised it to her lips and blew him a kiss.

They had originally planned on leaving before the late night show but Ru-ru had insisted on them staying.

Kankuro had discovered, much to his chagrin, himself easily conceding to the drag queen's request once he saw the tears.

It was admittedly, his one big weakness and one the entertainer used to her advantage.

The large man surreptitiously glanced about the table and was unsurprised to see Lulu and Hana equally transfixed by the drag queen's performance.

_He wasn't the only one to be swayed by the entertainer's tears…_

Kankuro couldn't help but notice how quickly his protector had also readily caved in and agreed to stay.

"So he decided to show up after all…little weasel. I still don't know why she keeps that bed snake around. Kami knows I've seen him hump anything with a pulse." Bit out a voice disparagingly beside him.

Kankuro turned in time to see a man dressed impeccably in a black Italian business suit move effortlessly through the crowd.

"Don't worry about it, Lulu darling. I doubt the arrival of god's gift to drag queens is going to rain on Ru-ru's parade this evening." Replied Hana lazily, her eyes firmly on the stage in front of her.

Kankuro glanced covertly to his side in time to see Lulu let out a gusty long sigh and counter, "I know but it just makes me a more than a little mad when I see him hanging off some fresh thing at the bar when I sure as shit know that Ru-ru is going to ask when he's going to show up as soon as I walk back stage."

"Ru-ru deserves better." Murmured Kankuro bluntly, then privately chastised himself for speaking out so candidly.

"I agree but it's not our place to tell Ru-ru who she should date." Replied Hana with a small look of distaste.

"Maybe it is...excuse me, Emiko. I will be right back." countered the large man, swiftly pushing himself up onto his feet.

"Wait! Where are you going?" asked Hana with a frown and wrap her fingers around Kankuro's wrist.

"I'm going to make Ru-ru's night and give weasel face something to think about." returned the man with a half smile as he gently removed Hana's hand off his wrist, turned and disappeared into the crowd.

"Oh dear...what should we do, Emiko? That little weasel is going to cause drama." murmured Lulu in concern.

Hana stared into the crowd for a few moments more before a small crafty smile ghosted her lips and she finally replied, "Not if he gets tossed out on his Gucci clad ass, he won't. Let George know that we are expecting trouble. The big guy is right, Ruru deserves a lot better than that bottom feeder."

Lulu gazed at his savior and silent partner for a few moments, her lips slowly lifting into a feral grin of delight.

"George...it's Lulu. We're cleaning out the trash tonight, starting with the weasel. Make sure the boys know." commanded the drag queen into her headset.

-4-4-4-4-

Kiba stalked into the office, a triumphant smirk wreathing his features.

"Kakashi's impromptu visit to Sabaku's apartment yielded some surprising results."

Shino's hands hovered above the keyboard as he turned his head to watch his friend in mild interest.

"Oh?"

"The police have four men in custody. They were so intent on turning the place upside down that they didn't notice Kakashi standing in the entrance." replied Kiba with a shit eating grin.

"Impressive. What's in the envelope?" countered Shino with a slight tilt of his head at the large yellow rectangle in his boss's hand.

"It turns out that the men are members of a big crime ring they have been investigating for a while. Detective Nara thought you might be interested in what his CSI team found and made copies for you. Are you _sure_ you two only get together for chess?" returned Kiba, his grin widening as Shino abruptly moved and snatched the envelope out of his hand.

"My personal life is none of your damn business." bit out Shino coolly, his long fingertips already deftly unwinding the red cord.

"Uh-huh. He also wanted to know if you would be interested in going to see a movie with him on his next day off...which would be this coming Tuesday." replied the man with a knowing smirk.

Kiba watched in amusement as Shino's nimble fingers paused in their task.

"I told him that you would be free and more than happy to join him." added Kiba, his smirk widening to a grin as he watched transfixed as the tips of his childhood friend's ears went red.

-4-4-4-4-

Kankuro stood at the entrance of the club, his eyes taking in the faded paint on the door and the bare metal prongs above his head.

"This place looks pretty run down. I'm surprised your friend didn't just take a bull dozer to the place and just re-build." quipped the man, as he watched Hana walk over to the state of the art security pad and key in the code.

Hana chuckled darkly, her now blue eyes twinkling and replied, "Don't let the exterior fool you. It's a lot sturdier than it looks. Knowing Anko, the place has all the bells and whistles inside to make the customers happy."

Kankuro privately doubted that this place was a diamond in the rough but he reluctantly followed his bodyguard into the building.

"Give me a moment...I will switch on some lights after I lock the door and re-activate the code. We don't want any uninvited guests." murmured Hana in the gloom.

Kankuro flinched as the room flooded with light, his eyes squinting to adjust to the brightness before he felt his jaw dropping.

"Amazing place, huh?"

Kankuro finally found his voice and rasped, "What is this place?"

Hana tilted her head to one side, gave the large man a saucy wink and threw her arms out in a grand gesture.

"This, my dear robotic genius, is Purgatory...the soon to be newest hottest place in town to get some kink and a drink." stated Hana with a smirk.

"Wait. You brought me to a Bondage Bar?" countered Kankuro, not bothering to hide his shock.

Hana chuckled and replied with a nod, "I can't think of a safer place to hide out, can you?"


End file.
